Central Idea

The Centre has introduced a Green Credit Program (GCP) that allows individuals and entities to earn Green Credits, which can be traded on a dedicated exchange.

What is the Green Credit Program (GCP)?

Objective: Aims to establish a competitive, market-based approach encouraging diverse stakeholders to undertake environmental actions.
Nodal Agency: Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change.

Voluntary Participation: Reflects inclusivity, as engagement in the program is entirely voluntary.
Entities: The program extends to a diverse range of entities, encompassing individuals, industries, farmer producer organizations (FPOs), urban local bodies (ULBs), gram panchayats, and private sectors.
Tradability: Tradable, fostering participation in a proposed domestic market platform.
Certificates: Upon approval, applicants receive Green Credit certificates.

Qualifying Activities: The program includes various activities such as tree plantation, water conservation, sustainable agriculture, waste management, air pollution reduction, mangrove conservation, eco-mark initiatives, sustainable building, and infrastructure development.
Registration and Verification: Participants must register their activities on the program’s website, which will undergo verification by a designated agency.

Equitable Calculation: Green Credits are determined based on resource equivalence, scalability, scope, size, and other relevant parameters, aiming to achieve desired environmental outcomes.
Credit Registry: A dedicated Green Credit Registry will oversee the tracking and management of these credits.
Trading Platform: An administrator will establish and maintain a trading platform for the exchange of Green Credits within the domestic market.

Non-Tradable for Legal Compliance: Green Credits obtained for legal compliance purposes will not be tradable, ensuring adherence to existing laws.
Independent from Carbon Credit Scheme: The GCP operates separately from the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, 2023, established under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.
Additional Climate Benefits: Activities generating Green Credits may also yield climate-related advantages, such as carbon emissions reduction, potentially resulting in the acquisition of carbon credits.