India to Reach Net Zero Carbon Goal by 2070, Says PM Modi at COP26 Summit; Makes 5 Big Promises

Making an ambitious pledge at the Glasgow climate summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said India will reach net-zero carbon emission by 2070. While delivering the national address as a ‘representative’ of developing nations, PM Modi outlined a five-point plan or ‘Panchamrit’ to fight the devastating effects of global warming and climate change.

‘Net zero’ emission refers to a scenario where the amount of greenhouse gases produced is the same as the amount removed from the atmosphere, by employing strategies like the planting of trees and deploying advanced technologies to capture carbon dioxide. China has said it would reach that goal in 2060, and the US and the EU aim for 2050.

LIVE Updates: India to Reach Net Zero Emissions by 2070, Says PM Modi at COP26 Summit

Modi affirmed India’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions by 1 billion tonnes and a net 45% carbon reduction among the five-point plan. On the energy front, the PM set yearly goals; to increase non-fossil fuel generation to 500 Gigawatts by 2030 and to fulfill 50% of its energy requirement through renewable energy by the same year.

“India will bring its non-fossil energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030. Second, by 2030 India will fulfill 50% of its energy requirement through renewable energy. Third, India will cut down its net projected carbon emission by 1 billion tonne from now until 2030. Fourth, by 2030 India will bring down carbon intensity of its economy by more than 45%. Fifth, by 2070 India will achieve the target of ‘net zero’,” the Prime Minister announced.

More than 120 heads of state and government are gathering in Glasgow for a two-day summit at the start of the UN’s COP26 conference, which organisers say is crucial for charting humanity’s path away from catastrophic global warming. “It’s one minute to midnight… and we need to act now,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said to start proceedings on an at-times chaotic opening day.

COP26 is being billed as vital for the continued viability of the Paris Agreement, which countries signed in 2015 by promising to limit global temperature rises to “well below” two degrees Celsius, and to work for a safer 1.5C cap. With a little over 1C of warming since the Industrial Revolution, Earth is being battered by ever more extreme heatwaves, flooding and tropical storms supercharged by rising seas.

Modi, in his speech, asserted that India is the only country that is delivering in “letter and spirit” the commitments on tackling climate change under the Paris Agreement, adding that India is working very hard on tackling climate change-related issues.

Calling for lifestyle changes, Modi said that environmentally conscious lifestyle choices could go a long way in tackling climate change. He urged to make ‘Lifestyle for Environment’ a global mission. The Prime Minister reiterated that developed nations must fulfil the promised $1 trillion as climate finance, saying this should be tracked the same way as climate mitigation. “India expects developed countries to make $1 trillion available as climate finance as soon as possible. As we track the progress of climate mitigation, we must also track climate finance. Justice would truly be served if pressure is put on those countries that have not lived up to their climate finance commitments, Modi said.

In his opening remarks at the summit, Modi had drawn attention to the plight of small farmers facing the effects of climate change in India, forcing them to make changes in their cropping patterns. He then espoused the need to adopt knowledge from traditional communities living close for nature, and made a case to focus on ‘climate adoption’ rather than ‘climate mitigation’.

“We have to make adaptation the main part of our development policies and schemes. In India, schemes like Nal Se Jal, Clean India Mission and Ujjawala have not only given adoption benefits to our citizens but also improved their quality of life,” he had said.

After the G20 Summit on Sunday, Union Minister Piyush Goyal had said that developed nations that have already enjoyed the fruits of low-cost energy must aim to achieve net zero much faster in order to help the developing countries pursue their development goals. India’s G20 Sherpa had also expressed satisfaction at the language of the summit’s communique “confirming that the developed world has acknowledged that they have not done enough in terms of meeting their commitments”.

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