Green miles to go and promises to keep
The world gathers for yet another pow-wow at the climate conference in Glasgow. What can we expect to gain ...
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India is committed to achieving net-zero carbon emission by 2070. Still, developed nations must deliver on their promises on climate finance.
“It's need of hour to put pressure on those countries that have failed to deliver on their promises about climate finance,” Modi said, delivering his national statement at the COP26 Climate Change Summit in Glasgow on Monday.
India has come up with a timeline for reaching net-zero or carbon neutrality for the first time, but the target date of 2070 is twenty years later than developed countries have been pushing for. Net-zero emission is reached when all man-made greenhouse gas emissions are removed from the atmosphere through reduction measures helping global temperature to stabilise.
The PM also announced that India will reduce 1 billion tonnes of carbon emissions from the total projected emissions by 2030 and reduce carbon intensity by 45 per cent in its economy.
“With 17 per cent global population, India is responsible for just 5 per cent of emissions,” Modi pointed out, adding that India was delivering in 'letter and spirit' on Paris Declaration commitments on tackling climate change.
When India took the ambitious pledge of achieving 450 GW installed capacity by 2030 through non-fossil fuel sources, it was seen as over-ambitious. Now, India is not only on track to achieve this target, but India has decided to further raise it to 500 GW, according to sources. India has also pledged to fulfil 50 per cent of its energy requirements from renewables by 2030.
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“PM gave a clear message to developed countries that just like India has raised its ambition in setting its targets, they also need to raise ambitions in climate finance & tech transfer. The world cannot achieve newer targets with old goals of climate finance,” the source said.
Earlier on Monday, Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav, on behalf of Brazil, China and South Africa, pushed the developed world to mobilise $100 billion annually as climate finance support to developing countries to meet their existing obligations towards carbon emissions. The plan should include providing finance for the next five years – from 2021 to 2025, he said.