Telecom Lead India: Indian telecom service providers have failed to meet the deadline to announce their carbon emissions as mandated in the Green Telecom Directive, for the second time this year.
Moreover, ignoring the guidelines, the Tower and Infrastructure Providers Association (TAIPA) has issued a request for proposal for 500 sites though the pilot on around 4000 sites has already been conducted, Greenpeace said.
According to Greenpeace, energy has been a major component of the operating expenditure of the telecom operators in India. With the recent hike in the diesel price, it will further hit their profitability. The implementation of the green telecom directive will result in a saving of INR 80,000 crore over a period of 8 years for the telecom sector.
“It is a matter of grave concern that the telecom operators are continuously defying the government directive on green telecommunication when in fact the directive is going to help their business. Given the defiant position of telecom operators, we demand the government to ensure the implementation of the green telecom directive by setting effective compliance mechanism,” said Mrinmoy Chattaraj, campaigner, Greenpeace India.
According to a report in Economic Times, telecom tower providers are looking to reduce operational costs by inviting proposals next week for setting up independent renewable energy companies that will generate and supply green power to run towers. TAIPA is working on a request-for-proposal or RFP for the initiative that will help save the cost of diesel for running towers especially in areas where grid electricity is not available.
Greenpeace, in a statement issued here, has urged that telecom operators should disclose carbon emissions of their business operations under the globally accepted framework of GHG protocol of World Resource Institute (WRI).
Greenpeace said the sector is losing out on its profitability by sticking to the expensive and polluting diesel and also being irresponsible towards environment. The hike in the diesel price is a wake-up call for the sector and a reminder that the road ahead is rough if they don’t take a decision on the diesel phase out now.
As the telecom operators continue their expansion in the rural areas they have a huge opportunity to champion the green telecommunications.
