The Hindu Business Line : ‘Swedish cos keen to provide green tech’

Hyderabad, Feb. 6 Many companies in Sweden can collaborate to provide green technologies to mitigate environmental hazards of urbanisation in India, according to Mr Andreas Carlgren, Minister of Environment, Government of Sweden.

Speaking at a seminar on environmental technology for sustainable urban development at CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre here on Tuesday, Mr Carlgren, who is leading a business delegation from Sweden, said there were many local/municipal level companies in Sweden engaged in waste water treatment, medical waste disposal and bio energy.

“Sweden-India cooperation in clean technologies began in 1972 when the first United Nations’ conference on environment was held in Stockholm. Ms Indira Gandhi, the then prime minister of India, attended the meet and set up the Ministry of Environment and Forests in India after her return,” he recalled.

Asserting that industrial development was possible without environmental degradation, the Swedish Minister said between 1990 and 2007 Sweden’s gross national domestic product grew 44 per cent, while the carbon dioxide omissions declined by 9 per cent.

Sweden is currently engaged in a pilot project in Visakhapatnam to apply latest concepts in green technologies to solve urban environmental hazards.

Mr Lars Olof Lindgren, Ambassador, Embassy of Sweden, said many companies in Sweden are looking to India.

“Few years ago, the business community in Sweden focused on China. But now, they realised that India cannot be ignored,” he said.

Later, the officials of IVL Sweden, a scientific and research agency, the Confederation of Indian Industry and Environmental Protection, Training and Research Institute (EPTRI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for a pilot project on capacity building for cleaner production in Patancheru Industrial area in Hyderabad.

The project, the finer details of which are yet to be worked out, would be totally funded by Sweden.

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