The Summit, while recognizing key limitations of the current financial system, was thin on tangible outcomes, and points towards incremental progress rather than a systemic transformation.
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This is a ‘stay-the-course’ budget on green growth, with the possible exception of support for hydrogen, but not, as yet, a green transformation inducing budget.
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The updated pledge reveals insights into India’s approach: one of caution and a preference to ensure over-compliance rather than under-compliance of international targets.
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Besides pointing to a climate conservative judicial role, this judgment is a grim reminder of the fact that the efficacy of climate action is determined by far more than the climate ambition of the Executive, but remains contingent on the interplay of different organs of the State.
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India is among the most vulnerable countries to climate change. Public communication, scientific expertise and stronger legislation will be the key factors in India’s adaptation efforts.
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The current crisis can be explained by a demand surge, supply disruptions and dysfunctional cash flow. A strategic approach to the energy transition that harnesses the low-cost power promise of renewable energy and opportunities for diversification in energy mix is critical to address persisting power shortages.
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A new report report has shown us, yet again, that air pollution is a national emergency, and that we must reject the discourse centred solely around Delhi. We must eschew the techno-fixes currently dominating discourse and recognise the long-term transitions necessary to sustainably improve air quality.
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The IPCC Working Group II’s synthesis of research on climate impacts, adaptation measures and vulnerability pushes governments and societies to respond immediately. The longer we wait on reducing global emissions, it argues, the fewer adaptation options we will have left.
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In this piece, we unpack the Union Budget 2022, focusing on its implications for the current air quality regulatory framework and whether it gives impetus to new and ongoing interventions through adequate financial support. We find that the budget does little to improve air quality management in India.
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The Union Budget of 2022-23 promises to take issues of sustainability and climate change seriously. And indeed, its framing on these issues is promising and forward looking. A look below the hood of the budget, however, presents, in practice, a far more mixed picture.
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The OM if implemented by the MOEFCC would not only have adverse consequences on the effective functioning of the SEIAAs as environmental regulatory bodies but also on the life and livelihood of people and the surrounding ecology.
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While EVs can help improve local air quality, simply replacing existing vehicles with EVs will not be sufficient. EVs could not only lead to increased emissions upstream, but potentially also worsen non-exhaust emissions.
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Many have hailed this as an ambitious and determined commitment from India. How different are these targets from India’s existing energy targets? What are the implications of meeting these targets?
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Prime Minister Modi’s announcement about India’s pledges at COP26 give us a possible hint of the future. Navroz K. Dubash writes about the net zero pledge, revised targets and their implications on India’s development.
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WHO guidelines are a clear nudge from the health sector towards the deep decarbonisation of our economy necessary to achieve both climate and air pollution goals. Placing public health at the centre of air quality management, coupled with a commitment to accountability and transparency in standard-setting, is the only way to ensure that the goals we set do not remain solely aspirational.
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A comprehensive climate law with a green vision can serve as the definitive mechanism whereby India’s future is secured in the decades to come.
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The recent IPCC report signals the urgent need for India, as others, to consider a climate law. However, an enabling law that cradles research and prompts investment in green technology might be far more effective in securing India’s long-term economic prosperity than a hastily enacted net-zero or carbon-capping law, which might prove ineffective, unenforceable, or debilitating.
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How can states be enabled to transition toward climate-resilient and low-carbon societies? How can they be empowered to experiment and learn from each other? Which mechanisms will enable slow-moving states to catch up with those taking climate consequences more seriously?
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The Ministry’s new Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) for ‘identification and handling of violation cases’ under the EIA Notification 2006 will further undermine our weak environmental regulatory framework, and should be withdrawn by the Ministry immediately.
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In India, a focus on development pathways requires three steps: sectoral transition plans for key areas of the economy; strong institutions for climate governance; and economy-wide targets that emphasise near-term actions.
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