RAS question
How much funding was allocated in Budget 2026-27 for Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) technologies?
Correct answer: (C) ₹20,000 crore.
Budget 2026-27 proposed an outlay of ₹20,000 crore for Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage technologies.
Explanation
The relevant Budget 2026-27 provision was for Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage, or CCUS, technologies. The Press Information Bureau release states that these technologies would be rolled out to raise readiness levels in end-use applications across five industrial sectors: Chemicals, Power, Steel, Cement and Refineries. It gives the funding figure as an outlay of ₹20,000 crore over the next five years to facilitate CCUS technologies. That is why option C is the right answer. The broader budget context also mentions green-industry measures such as zero customs duty on lithium-ion manufacturing equipment and ₹18,000 crore under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, or RDSS, for power-sector reforms, but the CCUS allocation itself is ₹20,000 crore.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) ₹5,000 crore is too low; the Press Information Bureau release gives the CCUS outlay as ₹20,000 crore, not one-fourth of that amount.
- (B) ₹10,000 crore is only half of the allocation; the Budget provision for CCUS technologies is ₹20,000 crore.
- (D) ₹50,000 crore overstates the figure; the CCUS outlay is ₹20,000 crore over the next five years.
Concept
This question tests understanding of budgetary allocations for green industrial policy. The topic recurs in the economy section of the RAS examination because candidates need to understand the link between climate technology and sectoral reform. CCUS also connects environmental policy, energy and industrial competitiveness, making it an important current-affairs topic for the examination.