What to Read in The Hindu Editorial( Topic and Syllabus wise)

Editorial 1: ​​​​A Kerala story

Context

Fighting poverty should be treated as a continuous mission that never truly ends.

Introduction

Kerala’s journey reflects how progressive governance, community participation, and strong local institutions can transform lives. On its 69th formation day, the State achieved a remarkable feat — the eradication of extreme poverty. This milestone came from a four-year mission, blending welfare planning, grassroots action, and inclusive development led by the Local Self-Government Department.

Kerala’s Milestone Achievement

• Kerala marked its 69th formation daywith the landmark goal of eradicating extreme poverty.
• The success came through a four-year, well-coordinated programmeled by the Local Self-Government Department.
• The initiative saw wide community participationacross districts and villages.
• The Extreme Poverty Eradication Programme (EPEP)began in May 2021, during Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s second LDF term.

Decades of Steady Progress

• Kerala’s model of people-centric governanceand decentralised planning brought long-term change.
• Poverty levels fell from 8% in 1973–74to 11.3% in 2011–12, showing consistent progress.
• The NITI Aayog’s 2023 reportranked Kerala as the least poor State in India.
• Only 55% of its peoplelive in multidimensional poverty, compared to 14.96% nationally.

Targeted Implementation and Custom Support

• Nearly four lakh trained enumeratorsand Kudumbashree workers identified the poorest families.
• The team avoided self-enrolment to ensure accurate, verified datathrough field-level checks.
• 64,006 familieswith 1,03,099 individuals were listed based on food, health, livelihood, and housing
• Each family received a custom micro-planwith specific help — documents, homes, jobs, medicines, food, palliative care, and organ transplants when required.

Continuing Mission and Broader Vision

• Poverty removal is seen as a never-ending task, demanding constant follow-up.
• Critics raised concerns about tribal welfareand uneven benefits in remote areas.
• The State launched EPEP 2.0to stop relapse and prevent new cases of extreme poverty.
• Kerala now focuses on infrastructure, green industries, and skilling youthto counter unemployment.
• The Kerala Modelblends welfare and growth, empowering local democracy and offering a sustainable, inclusive path for others to learn from.

Conclusion

Kerala’s story proves that poverty eradication is a continuous mission, not a final victory. Through EPEP 2.0, the State aims to sustain gains and prevent relapse. Its people-driven model balances welfarism and growth, ensuring social justice, economic resilience, and democratic strength — a true example of a self-evolving, inclusive development path.

 

Editorial 2: ​​The case for energy efficiency

Context

For India to truly clean its power grid, energy efficiency must lead the way, and flexibility as not fossil fuels should drive the future.

Introduction

India has made major strides in clean energy, yet the electricity you use today is more polluting than five years ago. This irony sits at the core of India’s energy transition. By June 2025, non-fossil fuels formed about 50% of India’s installed capacity. Still, the grid emission factor (GEF)— which tracks how much carbon each unit of power emits – rose from 0.703 tCO₂/MWh in 2020–21 to 0.727 tCO₂/MWh in 2023–24, as per the Central Electricity Authority. This is surprising, because more renewables should mean a cleaner grid. So, why is India’s power mix getting dirtier instead?

The Capacity–Generation Mismatch

• The key issue lies in the difference between installed capacity and actual generation. While renewables make up a large part of India’s capacity, they produce much less electricitythrough the year compared to coal or nuclear plants.
• Solar and windrun only at 15–25% efficiency, while coal and nuclear work at 65–90% capacity utilisation. This means even with rising renewable capacity, coal still dominates real power generation.
• In 2023–24, renewables (including hydro)provided just 22% of total electricity, while fossil fuels powered the rest. As demand grows, the gap widens, and coal plants continue meeting the extra load — making the grid more carbon-intensive.
• Power demand peakswhen renewables drop — evenings and nights. Solar fills the grid in daylight but fades at dusk, forcing coal plants to act as backup, which locks in emissions.
• This mismatch shows that capacity expansion alone isn’t enough. To truly decarbonise, India must add flexibility and storagealong with capacity. Though Round-the-Clock renewable power now costs under ₹5 per kWh, scaling it needs more land, transmission networks, and steady investment.

The Role of Energy Efficiency

• Energy efficiencyacts as the “first fuel”, cutting power demand before it even needs to be generated. By lowering evening and night-time peaks, it reduces coal dependence, especially when emissions are at their highest.
• Scaling up efficient appliancessuch as fans, air conditioners, and motors, and designing energy-smart buildings and industries, can reshape demand patterns and support cleaner energy use.
• Beyond saving coal, efficiency adds flexibility. It flattens demand peaks and aligns electricity use with renewable supply, preventing new investments in inefficient, polluting technologies.
• Between FY2017–18 and FY2022–23, the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)estimated India saved 200 Million Tonnes of Oil Equivalent — about 29 GT of CO₂eq, worth nearly ₹7.6 lakh crore in savings.
• Compared to France, Norway, and Sweden, whose grid emission factorsare just 1–0.2 tCO₂/MWh, India’s 0.727 tCO₂/MWh highlights its coal-heavy base. This makes energy efficiency a core strategy, not just an add-on. Without it, renewables risk being wasted during low-demand hours.

What Needs to Be Done

• India must let homes and offices link their batteriesinto virtual power plants. This will help the grid handle peak demand smoothly and reduce pressure on fossil fuels.
• It should tighten appliance efficiency standards, pushing markets toward 4-star and 5-star modelswhile raising performance benchmarks every few years.
• Small and medium enterprises (SMEs)need support and incentives to use efficient motors, pumps, and production processes, cutting waste and saving energy.
• India must introduce flexible electricity pricing. Tariffs should reward consumersfor using power during hours of high renewable energy availability, balancing the grid naturally.
• A scrappage policyshould target old, inefficient machines and appliances, replacing them with cleaner, high-efficiency versions.
• Distribution companies (DISCOMs)must start buying “electricity services”, such as green cooling as energy-efficient air conditioning powered by Round-the-Clock (RTC) renewable power.
• According to the Central Electricity Authority’s National Electricity Plan, India’s Grid Emission Factor (GEF)could fall to 548 by 2026–27 and 0.430 by 2031–32. But this drop demands more than just adding solar or wind. It requires a flexible, system-wide approach with energy efficiency at its heart.

Conclusion

India has managed to grow its economy while reducing its emission intensity by 33% between 2005 and 2019, as reported in its Fourth Biennial Update Report to the UNFCCC. However, the recent rise in the Grid Emission Factor (GEF) shows that growth alone is not enough. India now needs a balanced approach –  one that rapidly expands renewable energy, storage, and transmission, while deeply embedding energy efficiency across homes, industries, and cities. To truly decarbonise the grid, efficiency must become the first fuel, and flexibility – not fossil fuels and must drive the nation’s clean energy future.