India — Keynote Address [International Conference on Climate Change and the Role of Nuclear Power, Vienna (Austria), 7-11 October 2019]

The solution that would enable the world to credibly and viably address the global threat of climate change is still eluding us. At the same time, nuclear energy, perhaps the only source of clean and abundant base load energy, which at one stage seemed to grow rapidly, has slowed down at a time when a large part of the world is aspiring to better their quality of life and is yet to reach the necessary level of energy consumption. Although, there is awareness on the inevitability of nuclear energy in meeting the climate change threat in a cost-effective manner, universal acceptance of this reality is eluding us. Obviously, the approach to the resolution of the tangle between sustainable development of the world at large and the existential threat to the world as a whole, needs a deeper look. Several new developments are currently being worked upon. We also need to look at the projected timelines related to progression of the potential climate change threat and implementation of the new solutions to combat it. A set of solutions, that can be deployed on an adequate enough scale before it is too late, is the need of the hour. We need these solutions not just in the context of electricity but also to address the total energy needs in a holistic way. India is a large country on a rapid economic growth path with the largest additional energy needs as compared to any other country. How India sustainably addresses her growing energy needs is thus a matter of interest both locally as well as globally.