A day after setting a deadline of 2070 for net zero carbon emissions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a one-on-one meeting with global leaders while India held its own on pushing the cut-off date.
The deliberations were part of the two-week COP26 UN climate change conference in Glasgow to brainstorm and consider commitments to reduce emissions.
While the PM held meetings with his Nepal counterpart Sher Bahadur Deuba, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Israeli PM Naftali Bennett, among others, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla underlined that India has taken a slew of commitments.
Shringla pointed out that the 2070 target leaves India with the shortest gap between a peak emissions year and a net-zero year, reflecting the country’s willingness to contribute to climate change despite preoccupation with development issues.
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In an event on the impact of climate change on Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Modi committed that the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) to monitor cyclones, coral reefs and get timely information about the coast for SIDS. will create a special data window. Line surveillance through satellites. At the same time, the Foreign Secretary underlined that India’s contribution should not be underestimated.
“While many economies that have declared net zero (targets) peaked long ago, we are still peaking. We have to reach that level of development and industrial activity that gives us a future we hope for our citizens,” Shringla told a press conference after Modi’s national statement at the COP 26 climate summit in Glasgow on Monday. said in.
India committed to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2070: Modi
focus on eradicating poverty
Although most developed countries, including EU members and the US, have agreed to achieve net-zero by 2050, they reached their emissions peak several years ago.
Several European countries, including France, Germany, the UK, Sweden, Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland and the Netherlands, achieved peaks in the 1990s, while the US achieved its carbon emissions peak in 2007. On the other hand, India is unlikely to reach. Shringla said it would peak before 2040. The PM has outlined India’s own progress, which has led to a net-zero situation.
“The PM has pointed out that since we are essentially a developing country, our focus is to lift millions of our citizens out of poverty. We are working day and night to make life easier for our citizens in India. We are 17 percent of the world’s population. Yet we contribute only 5 percent of global emissions. We are contributing very easily to the overall issue of tackling climate change because we believe in it,” the foreign secretary said.
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