New Delhi (Sputnik): India's Cochin International Airport has won the UN award for its environment-friendly energy use. The airport in the south Indian state of Kerala has been selected for United Nations' (UN) highest environmental accolade, champion of the earth award for the year 2018.
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In a letter to Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL), UN environment executive director Solheim Erik informed that the award will be presented on the sidelines of the UN general assembly in New York on September 26.
VJ Kurian IAS, 1983 batch (retd 2017), brings home the 'Champion of the Earth' prize, the UN's highest environmental accolade.
— Mir | മീർ (@mir19in) July 26, 2018
What an honour this is for India, and of course to the ever innovative, forever enterprising, barrier-breaking spirit of #Kerala pic.twitter.com/Ap4COBlXEv
"This is the UN's highest environmental accolade and it reflects your leadership in the use of sustainable energy," says the letter sent by Solheim to CIAL Managing Director V J Kurian.
Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) has been selected for the Champion of Earth Prize —2018, the highest environmental honour instituted by United Nations (@UN). CIAL won the award on becoming the world’s first fully solar powered airport. pic.twitter.com/XPi7nMzJUc
— CMO Kerala (@CMOKerala) July 26, 2018
Earlier this year, Solheim had visited the airport and its solar power plant.
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"By September 2018, CIAL will upgrade its solar capacity to 40MW, with a power potential of 60 million units per annum. This would save 40 crores a year. This will also avoid 9 lakh metric tonnes of CO2 over the next 25 years, which is equivalent to planting 900,000 trees," Managing Director Kurian said on the occasion.
The ‘Champions of Earth' awards was constituted by the UN in the year 2005 to honour environmental leaders.
