Explain the key challenges for India’s energy security. What measures do you suggest for ensuring energy security along with economic growth and sustainability ?
Approach · directive: “explain / what”
What it asks · Identify the main vulnerabilities in India's energy supply and propose a strategy that secures energy while sustaining growth and meeting climate goals.
The question has 2 parts — answer each
- Explain the key challenges to India's energy security
- Suggest measures that ensure energy security along with economic growth and sustainability: specific and actionable
Open with · Energy security means uninterrupted access to energy at an affordable price; for a country importing most of its crude oil, it is also about strategic autonomy.
Cover
- Import dependence: nearly nine-tenths of crude and about half of gas imported; exposed to shocks and chokepoints, as in the 2026 West Asia crisis.
- Coal: still dominates power generation; issues of quality, logistics, emissions and stranded assets.
- Transition risks: intermittent renewables, storage and transmission gaps, weak DISCOM finances, critical minerals concentrated in a few countries.
- Rising demand from industry, urbanisation, cooling, electric mobility and data centres.
- Supply security: diversify crude sources, strategic petroleum reserves, overseas assets, long-term LNG contracts, domestic exploration.
- Clean domestic supply: renewables with storage, green hydrogen, nuclear expansion (100 GW by 2047) with private participation, pumped hydro.
- Demand and minerals: efficiency standards, ethanol blending, electric mobility, National Critical Mineral Mission, recycling; regional grids and International Solar Alliance.
Close with · A diversified, domestic-heavy mix — renewables and nuclear, gas as a bridge and efficiency first — reconciles security, growth and net zero by 2070.
Add value (verified)
- During the March 2026 West Asia crisis, the government noted that about 60% of LPG is imported and some 90% of that passes through the Strait of Hormuz. PIB — inter-ministerial briefing on West Asia (11 March 2026) ↗“India imports about 60 percent of its LPG consumption and out of these imports about 90 percent come through the Strait of Hormuz”
- India reached 50% of installed power capacity from non-fossil sources in 2025, five years ahead of its NDC target. PIB — MNRE (14 July 2025) ↗“India has achieved a landmark in its energy transition journey by reaching 50% of its installed electricity capacity from non-fossil fuel sources—five years ahead of the target”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2026, GS Paper III — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 304 words (UPSC limit 250) · Minimalist IAS
Energy security means uninterrupted supply at an affordable price; for a country that imports most of its crude oil, it is also a question of strategic autonomy.
Key challenges
- Import dependence: nearly nine-tenths of crude and about half of natural gas are imported; about 60% of LPG is imported and some 90% of that passes through the Strait of Hormuz, as the 2026 West Asia crisis exposed.
- Coal lock-in: coal still dominates power generation, with problems of quality, rail logistics, emissions and the risk of stranded assets as the world decarbonises.
- Transition risks: intermittent solar and wind need storage and transmission that lag behind; DISCOM finances are weak; critical minerals for batteries and magnets are concentrated in a few countries.
- Rising demand: industry, urbanisation, cooling, electric mobility and data centres push consumption up faster than clean supply grows.
- Macro exposure: oil price spikes feed inflation, the current account deficit and subsidy bills.
Measures: security with growth and sustainability
- Diversify supply: more crude sources, strategic petroleum reserves, overseas equity assets, long-term LNG contracts and faster domestic exploration.
- Build clean domestic capacity: renewables with storage and green transmission corridors, pumped hydro, green hydrogen for industry, and nuclear expansion towards 100 GW by 2047 with private participation; non-fossil sources already form 50% of installed capacity (2025).
- Manage demand: efficiency standards for appliances, buildings and industry; ethanol blending; electric mobility; gas as a bridge fuel in place of oil and coal.
- Secure minerals: the National Critical Mineral Mission, overseas partnerships and recycling of batteries and e-waste.
- Fix institutions and markets: DISCOM reform and cost-reflective tariffs; regional grids and the International Solar Alliance for cross-border trade in clean power.
A diversified, domestic-heavy mix, with renewables and nuclear at the core, gas as a bridge and efficiency first, is how India can reconcile security, growth and net zero by 2070.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.