Cabinet okays Paris climate pact

The Cabinet on Wednesday approved the signing of the Paris Agreement adopted at the Conference of Parties at Paris in December. Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar will sign the agreement on behalf of India on April 22 at a high level ceremony convened by the UN.

“India had advocated a strong and durable climate agreement based on the principles and provisions of the Convention. The Paris Agreement addresses all the important concerns and expectations of India,” an official statement said adding that the agreement acknowledges the imperatives of developing countries.

The Cabinet also gave its nod for amendments in the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Bill, 2015, which will ensure speedy utilisation of the unspent amounts available with the ad hoc Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority. These funds will be spent on executing appropriate measures to mitigate impact of the diversion of foreign land, creation of productive assets and generation of employment opportunities in rural areas, the official statement added.

The Cabinet also approved expansion of Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between India and Chile to enhance the trade and economic relations between the two countries. “Under the proposed expanded PTA, 86 per cent of India’s exports to Chile will get covered with concessions, which is likely to result in doubling of our exports in the near future,” the official statement added.

Other Cabinet approvals include transfer of land belonging to the Central Tobacco Research Institute, Rajahmundry to the Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University, Hyderabad on a long lease basis for a period of 50 years for establishment of an Agriculture College at Rajahmundry.

Approval was also given for operationalisation of the new Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) at Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh at an estimated cost of ₹137.30 crore for the initial three years .

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