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Tag: #Gujarat

  • Gujarat emissions model goes global as Rio launches first South America market

    Gujarat emissions model goes global as Rio launches first South America market

    The state of Gujarat, an Earthshot Prize 2025 finalist, is taking its pioneering emissions trading model global through a new partnership with the City of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

    The Emissions Market Accelerator (EMA) will help Rio explore South America’s first particulate matter emissions market, adapting proven lessons from India to cut pollution while supporting economic growth.

    The announcement was made at The Earthshot Prize Impact Assembly, co-hosted with Bloomberg Philanthropies during London Climate Action Week.

    “The Rio de Janeiro City Hall is taking a bold step forward in spearheading this innovative approach to reducing pollution,” said EMA Co-Chair Michael Greenstone, Milton Friedman Distinguished Service Professor in Economics at the University of Chicago.

    “We are thrilled to work with government leaders to ensure this market successfully reduces pollution while fostering continued economic growth.”

    Once launched, Rio’s emissions market would be the first of its kind in South America.

    Gujarat’s groundbreaking work on market-based pollution control spurred the launch of the Emissions Market Accelerator. The state has since launched a second market and is developing two more for sulfur dioxide and wastewater pollution. The EMA is also working with other Indian states and expanding globally.

    “This partnership with Rio marks an exciting step toward globalizing the success of market-based pollution control,” said Kaushik Deb, Executive Director of the EMA. “In Gujarat, we demonstrated that emissions trading can dramatically reduce pollution without compromising industrial productivity. Now we can take those lessons global.”

    Eduardo Cavaliere, Mayor of Rio de Janeiro, said: “Rio de Janeiro is proud to partner with the Emissions Market Accelerator (EMA) to bring market-based solutions to air pollution in South America for the first time. Gujarat’s emissions trading scheme, recognized by the Earthshot Prize, proves cities can harness innovative tools to protect people and the future.”

  • Maruti Suzuki signs Gujarat MoU for five ITI labs

    Maruti Suzuki signs Gujarat MoU for five ITI labs

    Maruti Suzuki India Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Directorate of Employment and Training (DET), Government of Gujarat, to establish Advanced Manufacturing Labs (AMLs) at Industrial Training Institutes in Palanpur, Bhavnagar, Surendranagar, Godhra, and Dahod, the company announced.

    The initiative, developed under Maruti Suzuki’s Corporate Social Responsibility program, is aligned with the Government of India’s Skill India mission and aims to build a future-ready automotive workforce across the state.

    The Advanced Manufacturing Labs replicate real-world shop-floor conditions and provide hands-on training in assembly, welding, painting, machining, mechatronics, and industrial safety — areas directly relevant to modern automotive manufacturing.

    EXPANDING MANUFACTURING FOOTPRINT

    The Skill India push in Gujarat coincides with a significant expansion of Maruti Suzuki’s manufacturing operations in the state. The company is set to commission a fourth production line at its Hansalpur facility this year, raising total annual capacity there from 750,000 units to 1 million units.

    In addition, Maruti Suzuki is constructing a new plant at Sanand with a capacity of 1 million units annually. Once operational, the company’s combined annual production capacity in Gujarat will reach 2 million units.

    EXECUTIVES SPEAK

    Rahul Bharti, Senior Executive Officer, Corporate Affairs, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said the company’s Skill India alignment was central to creating livelihood opportunities for young people.

    “Through Advanced Manufacturing Labs, we are equipping students with experiential learning and confidence in modern equipment, nurturing professionals who can seamlessly integrate into the evolving automotive ecosystem,” Bharti said.

    He added that each manufacturing expansion brought with it a demand for skilled, job-ready talent, and that the AMLs were designed to meet that need directly.

    Ms. Stuti Charan, IAS, Director, DET, Government of Gujarat, said the initiative bridges a longstanding gap between classroom instruction and industry expectations.

    “This initiative will empower our youth and strengthen Gujarat’s position as a hub for the automotive sector, in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of Viksit Bharat and the Chief Minister’s guidance toward Viksit Gujarat 2047,” Charan said.

    NATIONAL SCALE

    Maruti Suzuki currently supports 31 ITIs across India in manufacturing-related trades. The company has established 18 AMLs nationwide to date. With the five new Gujarat labs, the total will rise to 23 AMLs operating across seven states and union territories — Gujarat, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and Chandigarh.

    The company also operates four Japan-India Institutes for Manufacturing in Gujarat, at Mehsana and Gandhinagar, and in Haryana, at Manesar and Sonipat. The institutes were established as a bilateral initiative between the Governments of India and Japan to develop a skilled manufacturing workforce.

  • Ambuja Cements Drives Women Empowerment, Hands E-Autos to 10 SHG Women in Gujarat

    Ambuja Cements Drives Women Empowerment, Hands E-Autos to 10 SHG Women in Gujarat

    Ambuja Cements, the ninth-largest building materials solutions provider globally and part of the Adani Portfolio, has handed over electric auto-rickshaws to 10 women from Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in the Kodinar region of Gujarat, opening a new chapter in rural women empowerment and self-employment on International Women’s Day.

    The handover ceremony was held at Ambujanagar, marking the culmination of a structured skilling and financing initiative designed to equip women with both the capability and capital to operate independent transport businesses.

    Women associated with Sorath Mahila Vikas Sahakari Mandali and local SHGs underwent two months of specialised e-auto driving training at the Skill and Entrepreneurship Development Institute (SEDI), Ambujanagar. The programme focused on building safe driving skills and operational confidence among participants.

    Following training, participants purchased the e-autos with extended loan support from Sorath Mahila Vikas Sahakari Mandali, ensuring financial access remained no barrier to ownership.

    The trained women will operate e-autos in and around Kodinar, providing passenger transport services and ferrying school-going children — addressing a critical rural mobility gap while generating sustainable household income.

    Ambuja Cements officials, present at the handover, encouraged the women to embrace their self-employment journey, reaffirming the company’s commitment to income-generating opportunities for women in underserved rural communities.

    The initiative reflects Ambuja Cements’ wider strategy of linking skill development with livelihood creation, particularly for women in regions surrounding its plant operations. The company’s SEDI centres across India have trained thousands of rural youth and women in vocational skills since inception.

    The e-auto programme aligns with India’s broader push for electric mobility adoption in rural areas and dovetails with national priorities around women-led development and the SHG movement under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission.