COP28: India's Opportunity to Take a Leadership Role in Climate Change

By Maya Anandan

In the span of my 17 years, Delhi has gone from being indifferent to the winter haze to filling our living rooms with humming air purifiers and riding the EV wave that is currently sweeping the country. However, the level of public discourse around our broader climate change goals has been less than ideal. At this critical time in India’s trajectory, we must not forget the opportunities to address the climate concerns we face. As Prime Minister Modi leaves the Delhi smog behind and heads to the UAE for COP28, India has an opportunity to take a leadership role in the conversations around Climate Change.

There is no doubt that our collective reliance on fossil fuels is driving greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. The North-South global climate divide has highlighted the difference in contribution to historical emissions between industrialised economies and the less-developed countries. The role India should play in this debate, however, is one of leadership and innovation, while balancing growth for a population largely in need of basic necessities.

India was celebrated at COP27 for making ambitious promises under its updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) which include a commitment to reducing fossil fuel emissions intensity of GDP by 45% and to achieve about 50% cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030. Prime Minister Modi must be commended for his willingness to participate in COP28 and he now has the opportunity to set a goal for India and the rest of the world.

India’s growth in the last decade has been propelled by fossil fuels, as it continues to actively expand coal mining and further import coal. Coal is the number one source for rising temperatures and if the country does not reduce its reliance, other efforts in expanding renewable energy sources in the fight for climate change will hardly make a dent. Domestic coal production grew by 14.8% in 2022-2023 partly due to the government’s planned opening up of the sector to private companies. In the most recent round of coal mine auctions, which closed in June 2023, the government received 35 bids for 18 coal blocks or 103 mines. Plans for expansion will clear away parts of the largest forest lands in the country in places like Chhattisgarh.

COP27 concluded with a groundbreaking decision to put in place a Loss and Damage Fund, with a particular focus on helping countries most vulnerable to climate change. India ranks third amongst the top 50 countries most susceptible to the impacts of climate change and will be significantly affected by the drastic increase in extreme weather events that we already experienced this year such as heavy rains and recent floods, heatwaves, droughts and cyclones. Therefore, mitigation efforts, which require slowing the rise in fossil fuel emissions, and adaptation measures to help minimize the impacts of climate change, are both crucial for India to survive the effects of the climate crisis. Instead, the country has argued that adaptation should take precedence over mitigation due to its lower contribution to global emissions. These are tough questions that still need to be answered.

COP28, set to start November 30 in Dubai, marks a significant milestone and an important point in the journey towards net zero emissions as it falls exactly at the halfway mark between when the historic Paris Agreement was signed and the 2030 target date to reduce global emissions by 50%. While promises and commitments will continue to be made, India holds an influential position on the heels of the G20 presidency to shape the expected outcomes of COP28. Ambitious long-term goals will be praised, but action on the ground and in underground mines is what really matters.