India has 13,316.34 ha of land available for Eco-restoration.
What is a Green Credit Programme (GCP)?
- It is a programme designed to encourage voluntary Eco-restoration activities across the country, resulting in the award of Green Credits.
- Eco-restoration is the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed.
What are Green Credits?
Green Credits (GCs) are a form of environmental rewards that represent the positive environmental actions awarded to entities who participate in Eco-restoration initiatives under the Green Credit Programme.
Activities which are included under Eco-restoration:
Tree Plantation
To promote activities for increasing the green cover across the country.
Water Management
To promote sustainable and improved practices for waste management, including collection, segregation, and environmentally sound management.
Sustainable Agriculture
To promote natural and regenerative agricultural practices and land restoration to improve productivity, soil health and nutritional value of food produced.
Waste Management
To promote sustainable and improved practices for waste management, including collection, segregation, and environmentally sound management.
Air Pollution Reduction
To promote measures for reducing air pollution and other pollution abatement activities.
Mangrove Conservation and Restoration
To promote measures for conservation and restoration of mangroves.
Eco-mark Label Development
To encourage manufacturers to obtain Eco-mark label for their goods and services.
Sustainable Building and Infrastructure
To encourage the construction of sustainable buildings and other infrastructure using environment friendly technologies and materials.
Who can get involved in GCP?
- Government institutions
- Public Sector Undertakings
- Non-Government Organizations
- Private Companies/Organizations
- Philanthropists
- Individuals or a Group of Individuals registered under Societies Registration Act such as Literary, Scientific, and Charitable Societies.
Significance of Green Credit Programme (GCP):
- GCP promotes ecosystem restoration and mitigates environmental degradation.
- GCP supports the ‘LiFE’-‘Lifestyle for Environment’, which is a mass movement, for protection and conservation of environment.
- Green Credits serve as a key incentive for entities engaging in tree plantation.
- New Revenue will be created for individuals and businesses for their contributions towards sustainability.
- These Green Credits issued can be utilized by the entity for accounting within the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) framework.
- Green Credits are non-tradable and non-transferable. They can be transferred between the holding company and its subsidiary companies.
- Land Inventory created under GCP will primarily help the government to create a digital database of land records.
- This programme can result into inclusivity as a range of entities from individuals and small-scale initiatives to larger companies and government bodies can volunteer.
- GCP builds trust among programme participants by serving a centralized digital platform for managing, monitoring, and implementing end-to-end processes under the GCP.
As of date, the Green Credit Programme is open for Central Public Sector Undertakings to adapt Tree Plantation and to support Eco-restoration of Degraded Forest lands.
Gazette Notification for Green Credit Programme dated 12th October 2023
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