Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh government on Monday signed a tripartite MoU with the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and National Institute of Urban Affairs for implementing the CITIIS 2.0 climate action plan.
Under this, AP is expected to get a grant of Rs 25 crore for setting up State Climate Center for Cities (S-C3) and also creating State and city-level Climate Data Observatories.
A special ‘Climate Budget’ is also envisaged for urban centres under the programme.
State Municipal Administration and Urban Development Department Principal Secretary S Suresh Kumar signed the MoU in the presence of Union Urban Development Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on the opening day of the three-day high-level 12th Regional 3R and Circular Economy Forum in Asia and the Pacific being held in Jaipur, Rajasthan.
The MAUD Department Principal Secretary is leading the state official delegation at the international event being attended by about 300 international participants from 40 Asia-Pacific countries and 200 from across India.
Suresh Kumar is showcasing Andhra Pradesh’s initiatives aimed at attaining the Sustainable Development Goals, reducing carbon emissions and achieving net-zero targets.
The CITIIS 2.0 aims to drive investments into urban centres for climate action.
The programme will help put into place a climate governance framework at the state and city levels and also provide a three-tier technical assistance structure with domestic, international and transversal experts to support capacity development for climate action in cities and states, according to Suresh Kumar.
Under CITIIS 2.0, financial assistance would be provided for projects selected through a competition for promoting a circular economy with a focus on integrated waste management.
“This will facilitate data-driven planning and implementation of climate action plans in urban local bodies and build capacities of municipal functionaries.
Andhra Pradesh has set ambitious targets to make the state cleaner and greener and the citizens happier and healthier in a timebound manner by the year 2027 through a series of actions aimed at fostering environmental conservation and sustainability.
Simultaneously, the state is seeking to create self-employment avenues for the youth in collection, transportation, resource recovery, recycling and upcycling. To this end, youths will be provided skill development training in solid and liquid waste management.
The state is also planning to attract investments for creating value-chain activities in environment management.