Parliament Digest: 20.7 Million Tonnes Plastic Recycled, 20% Ethanol Target Met

Around 20.7 million tonnes of plastic packaging waste have been recycled since India's Extended Producer Responsibility guidelines came into force in 2022, the Lok Sabha was informed, with 60,128 producers, importers, and brand owners registered on the central EPR portal. Parliament also heard that India's 20 per cent ethanol blending target was achieved in December 2025, ahead of the end of the supply year.

The Central Pollution Control Board imposed environmental compensation of Rs 48.42 crore for EPR non-compliance and recovered Rs 47.35 crore between 2018 and 2024. Show-cause notices were issued in November 2024, December 2024, and March 2026 under the Environment Protection Act to producers failing to meet EPR targets or submit annual returns. India's total installed power generation capacity stood at 524 GW as of February 28, 2026, including 266.7 GW of renewable energy, 143.6 GW of solar, 55.1 GW of wind, 8.8 GW of nuclear, and 248.5 GW of thermal capacity.

On cheetah conservation, 29 cheetahs have been translocated to India from Namibia, South Africa, and Botswana, with 45 cubs born in Kuno National Park and 33 surviving, giving a cub survival rate of 73.33 per cent and an overall survival rate of 71.62 per cent. For compressed biogas, mandatory blending targets of 1 per cent in 2025–26 rise to 5 per cent from 2028–29 onwards under the SATAT initiative. Sustainable aviation fuel indicative targets are set at 1 per cent by 2027, 2 per cent by 2028, and 5 per cent by 2030, initially for international flights.

Out of 3,754 groundwater samples analysed in 2024, 6.71 per cent exceeded the uranium permissible limit of 30 ppb, concentrated in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh. Under AMRUT, 348 cycling and pedestrian infrastructure projects worth Rs 1,022.27 crore have been grounded, with 430 kilometres of pedestrian walkways and 43 kilometres of cycle tracks created. The government targets 500 GW of non-fossil fuel installed capacity by 2030, with the current 266.7 GW of renewable capacity representing 50.9 per cent of the installed total.

Key figure — 20.7 million tonnes of plastic packaging waste recycled under EPR since 2022