How do electric vehicles (EVs) use batteries to power the car, and why is it important for these batteries to store a lot of energy?
Gender Budgeting refers to integrating gender perspective in preparation, analysis and assessment of budgets and policies and translating gender commitments into budgetary operations. It is put into use by embedding gender-specific goals in fiscal policies by emphasizing on reprioritization rather tRead more
Gender Budgeting refers to integrating gender perspective in preparation, analysis and assessment of budgets and policies and translating gender commitments into budgetary operations. It is put into use by embedding gender-specific goals in fiscal policies by emphasizing on reprioritization rather than an increase in overall public expenditure or creation of a separate budget. It aims to achieve gender mainstreaming in legislation, policies and programmes to ensure that benefits and development reach women.
Significance of gender budgeting in India:
- It increases transparency and accountability of the budgeting process, as it highlights the proportional expenditure on both genders and the method/process of the expenditure.
- It will help in achieving SDG-5, related to achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls.
- Special attention would address female’s vulnerabilities and provide them access to resources and improve their performance on social indicators like health, education etc.
- Conscious efforts to create economic opportunities for women can help increase the female workforce participation rate, which remains low and consequently boost GDP.
- Integrating gender perspective into macroeconomic policy improves equity of the overall budget process.
The Centre and states have taken various steps to adopt gender budgeting, such as:
- The first significant attempt at making gender-sensitive resource allocation was the “Women’s Component Plan” (WCP) as a part of the Ninth Five-Year Plan (1997-2002), which earmarked 30% of developmental funds for women under various schemes of ministries/departments.
- India adopted the WCP as a budgetary strategy in 2004-05 and since then it has been institutionalized in the annual budget by incorporating the gender budget statement. This statement highlights the annual budget allocation for welfare schemes for women by categorizing them as “Women-Specific Schemes” (100% fund allocation for women) and “Pro- Women Schemes” (where at least 30% of the allocation is for women).
- A Gender Budgeting Secretariat has been placed in the Ministry of Finance, and central ministries and departments have been mandated to set up gender budgeting cells to initiate and take forward the gender budgetary strategy.
- The Ministry of Women and Child Development has come up with guidelines for integrating gender budgeting into beneficiary-oriented schemes.
- Many states and union territories such as Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Andaman and Nicobar islands, Dadra and Nagar Haveli etc. have taken significant steps to institutionalise gender budgeting.
Apart from these, there is a need to significantly increase the budgetary allocation for women, as funds allocated for Gender Responsive Budgeting are approximately 5% of the public expenditure and less than 1% of GDP. Further, careful analysis of gender-oriented schemes before launching and post implementation would go a long way in curbing gender inequalities and contributing to the overall development.
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Electric vehicles (EVs) use rechargeable batteries to store and convert electrical energy into mechanical energy to power the car's movement. The importance of these batteries being able to store a lot of energy is crucial for the performance and practicality of electric vehicles. Here's how electriRead more
Electric vehicles (EVs) use rechargeable batteries to store and convert electrical energy into mechanical energy to power the car’s movement. The importance of these batteries being able to store a lot of energy is crucial for the performance and practicality of electric vehicles.
Here’s how electric vehicles use batteries to power the car:
Importance of Battery Energy Density:
- Driving Range:
- The ability of the battery pack to store a large amount of energy is crucial for the driving range of an electric vehicle.
- The higher the energy density of the batteries, the more energy can be stored in a given volume or weight, allowing the vehicle to travel farther on a single charge.
- Vehicle Performance:
- High-energy-density batteries enable electric vehicles to have powerful acceleration, high top speeds, and the ability to climb hills and negotiate various driving conditions effectively.
- This is because the stored energy can be quickly and efficiently delivered to the electric motor, providing the necessary power for the vehicle’s performance.
- Reduced Charging Time:
- Batteries with higher energy density can store more energy in the same physical space, which means they can be charged more quickly, reducing the time required to replenish the vehicle’s driving range.
- This is important for the convenience and adoption of electric vehicles, as it addresses the concern of long charging times compared to the refueling of conventional gasoline-powered vehicles.
- Reduced Vehicle Weight:
- Higher energy density in batteries can lead to a reduced overall weight of the vehicle, as fewer batteries are required to achieve the desired driving range.
- This improved weight-to-power ratio enhances the vehicle’s efficiency, handling, and overall performance.
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