Renewables edge out coal as world’s biggest source of electricity: Many positives, some concerns

For the first time ever, renewable energy has eclipsed coal as the world’s leading source of electricity during the first half of this year, according to new data from the UK-based energy think tank Ember.

India’s grid has broadly mirrored this trend, with separate government data up to June 30 showing that non-fossil fuel sources in the country accounted for 50.1 per cent of its installed electricity capacity, displacing thermal as the predominant sources of its installed electricity capacity.

These sources – which include nuclear, large hydro, and renewables – made up just 30 per cent of installed capacity in India up to 2015 and 38 per cent in 2020, before surging sharply over the last five years, on the back of solar and wind power.

When the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, India