COP26: Glasgow Summit : India’s announcements – UPSC GS3

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Summary:
  • India announced Panchamitra : 5 announcement to tackle Emissions.
  • India proposed LIFE : Life for Environment
  • Now the ball is in the developed world’s court with respect to climate finance wherein India expects developed countries to provide $1 trillion at the earliest.
What has been India’s track record with respect to its efforts on climate change?
  • Today India is at number four in the world in installed renewable energy capacity. India’s non-fossil fuel energy has reached 40% of our energy mix.
  • India’s railway system has set itself a target of making itself ‘Net Zero’ by 2030. This initiative alone will lead to a reduction of 60 million tonnes of emissions annually.
  • Similarly, India’s massive LED bulb campaign is reducing emissions by 40 million tonnes annually.
  • India has also given institutional solutions to cooperate with the world at the international level. It initiated the International Solar Alliance. It also created a coalition for disaster resilient infrastructure (CDRI) for climate adaptation.
What are the new announcements made by India at Glasgow?
India made five big-ticket announcements terming them as ‘Panchamrit’, at the climate change meeting in Glasgow:
  1. India will reach its non-fossil energy capacity to 500GW (India had earlier extended its target to 450GW out of which 100GW is already installed) by 2030.
  2. India will meet 50% of its energy requirements from renewable energy by 2030.
  3. India will reduce the total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonnes from now onwards till 2030. India’s emissions are rising, at about 4 to 5% every year. So the total emissions between now and 2030 is expected to be in the range of about 40 billion tonne. It is in this amount, that a one billion tonne reduction has been announced.
  4. By 2030, India will reduce the carbon intensity of its economy by less than 45%.
  5. By the year 2070, India will achieve the target of Net Zero.
Note: ‘Panchamrita’ is a traditional method of mixing five natural foods — milk, ghee, curd, honey and jaggery. These are used in Hindu and Jain worship rituals. It is also used as a technique in Ayurveda.
What is LIFE?
  • India has also given the idea of LIFE at Glasgow.
  • LIFE is shorthand for Lifestyle For Environment which entails the need for all of us to come together, with collective participation, to take Lifestyle For Environment (LIFE) forward as a campaign.
Comparison of announcements made by India at Paris and Glasgow
Sector
Paris (COP21)
Glasgow (COP26)
Emission intensity of GDP
Reduction  by 33%–35% by 2030 below 2005  levels
Reduction  by less than 45% by 2030  below 2005 levels
Share of renewable energy in India’s total energy  generation
Increasing  the share of renewable energy to 40% by  2030.
Increasing  the share of renewable energy to 50% by  2030.
Carbon sink
To  create an additional (cumulative) carbon sink of 2.5–3 GtCO2e through  additional forest and tree cover by 2030.
No new  announcement.
Why are the latest announcements by India at Glasgow important?
  • The latest announcements assume significance since this is the first time India has taken any climate target in terms of absolute emissions.
  • Before this, the closest reference to altering its emissions trajectory used to be in the form of emissions intensity.
  • This is because under the international climate change architecture, only developed countries are mandated, and expected, to make reductions in their absolute emissions.
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