Technology needs to be sustainable, accessible, affordable: Dharmendra Pradhan

Gandhinagar (Gujarat) [India], July 29 (ANI): Union Minister of Petroleum Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday stressed on the need to scale up technology in India, adding that it should encompass three main features- sustainability, affordability and accessibility.

"Technology must use components of sustainability, affordability, and accessibility, and should be eco-friendly. These must be scaled up in India," he said, while speaking to media on the sidelines of the sixth Petrochemical Conclave here.

Highlighting the recent surge in the spending capacity of India's middle class, Pradhan revealed that for the first time, India's per-capita income reached Rs. 1, 00, 000, as per a report commissioned by the National Statistics Department (NSD).

Owing to this, Pradhan noted that there will be a rise in the demand for petrochemical products in the country.

"Per-capita petrochemical consumption is currently 10kg. With the current refining capacity, production and demand of petroleum and petrochemical products need to be satisfied. We are expecting multi-fold growth by 2030. For this, Make in India, Skill India mission and Swacch Bharat movement are important," he said.

"India's refining capacity is now 230 million metric tonnes. Domestic consumption is around 190-200 million metric tonnes. Therefore, the rest of it is exported to Sri Lanka, Latin America and so on. Our aim is to make India a refinery hub in the near future," said Pradhan. (ANI)

This story has not been edited. It has been published as provided by ANI