India’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions
India has submitted its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Some of the salient points of the INDC are:
• To put forward and further propagate a healthy and sustainable way of living based on traditions and values of conservation and moderation.
• To adopt a climate-friendly and a cleaner path than the one followed hitherto by others at corresponding level of economic development.
• To reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 per cent by 2030 from 2005 level.
• To achieve about 40 per cent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel based energy resources by 2030, with the help of transfer of technology and low cost international finance, including from Green Climate Fund.
• To create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.
• To better adapt to climate change by enhancing investments in development programmes in sectors vulnerable to climate change, particularly agriculture, water resources, Himalayan region, coastal regions, health and disaster management.
• To mobilize domestic and new and additional funds from developed countries to implement the above mitigation and adaptation actions in view of the resource required and the resource gap.
• To build capacities, create domestic framework and international architecture for quick diffusion of cutting edge climate technology in India and for joint collaborative R&D for such future technologies.
Possible Challenges
- It has been seen in past that advanced economies, have promised funding of 100 billion per year, but has been far from realization in real world. This would come as a big financial bearing on India’s plan.
- Achieving 40% of renewables in India’s energy mix which is still dominated by coal, seems a far-fetched target. Though India has embarked upon target of 175GW of renewable energy by 2022, yearly capacity addition (~ 5GW) makes the target look like a dream.
- CAMPA funds has been defamed because of its lying unused. In the given scenario, a promise of creating additional 3 billion tonnes of equivalent afforestation, will seek a governance revolution.
