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Swapan Kataria, co -founder and CEO of Crown LNG, said that although India has the ability to achieve energy security by 2047, urgent policy action is fundamental. “By doing what we are doing now, we won it there,” he warned at the Bharat Summit in Ascent 2025
Swapan Kataria at Rising Bharat Summit 2025. (Image: News18)
Swapan Kataria, co-founder and executive director of Crown LNG, delivered a clear and urgent message about the future of India’s energy in the future of India in the CNN-News18 Rising Bharat Summit 2025. Speaking in a chat next to the fire entitled “Powering tomorrow: Energy security for the youth of India.” Kataria emphasized that guaranteeing affordable, reliable and clean energy is essential for India to fulfill its demographic dividend and perform the ambition to become a Viksit Bharat by 2047.
Kataria said that, although India has established an ambitious energy security objective, “doing what we are doing now, we won there.” It emphasizes that Althegh the timeline 2047 gives India space to act: “The steps have to be tasks now.” According to him, India’s ability is not in doubt: “The gap is found at the policy level.”
Energy security: a non -negotiable for growth
Kataria warned that energy security cannot be seen in isolation. “It is a development facilitator,” he said that each sector, from manufacturing to services, depends on energy availability. Without reliable and affordable energy, he said, India’s growth history could stumble.
Highlighting the mismatch between the growth of GDP and the energy growth of India, Kataria said that although the economy grew by around 6 percent last year, energy availability grew only from 2 to 2.5 percent. “That gap is unsustainable,” he is careful. “If we want to continue creating jobs and opportunities for our young people, this gap must be closed.”
Call bold action
Kataria made it clear that India cannot afford incrementalism. “India has never lacked the capacity. It’s about whether policies and frames exist to free it,” he said.
The carelessness that several global companies and investors are eager to participate in the energy transition in India, but often face policy obstacles. “Clear, consistent and facilitative policies are essential to achieve energy security in a significant timel,” he said.
Affordability, accessibility and sustainability must go together
Speaking about the combination of energy, Kataria emphasized that India needs an energy policy that guarantees affordability, accessibility and sustainability. He acknowledged that although green energy and renewable energies are critical, the country cannot abruptly move away from traditional fuels without addressing the problems of scale and reliability. “The LNG, for example, sacrifices a cleaner bridge fuel that can help India to the transition without compromising energy security,” Kataria said.
Young people must be in the center of energy policy
Kataria, while talking at the Bharat Rising summit, also emphasized that any long -term energy strategy should be designed taking into account the young people of India. “We talk about a demographic dividend, but if we don’t have enough energy to boost industries, jobs and entrepreneurship, that dividend will waste,” he warned.
The road to 2047: Start now or waste time
In his final comments, Kataria summarized the challenge: “2047 sounds very far, but it is not. Energy infrastructure takes decades to build.
He left the audience with a final thought: that energy security is not only a technical or commercial problem, but the basis on which the future prosperity of India will rest.