India

Key Statistics

Cumulative CO2 Emissions from Energy (1990-2005)

Global Rank

6th
Per Capita Global Rank

124th
Percent Global total

3.87%
Tons Per Person
31.3T

Kyoto Goals and Status

Kyoto Target, Compared to 1990

N/A
Emissions Change (1990-2007)

+73%

Key Negotiators

Map

Copenhagen Positions

Long Term Temperature Goal

2 Degrees Celsius
2020 Target
2050 Target

Long-term stabilization target linked to a medium term target for emission reduction by Annex I Parties, 95% below 1990
Annex I 2020 Target

Aat least -79.2%

Historical and Projected Data

1990 2007 2020 2030
Polluter Rank–Per Capita (Annual)1 155th 120th*
Polluter Rank–Gross (Annual)2 9th 5th
Total Annual GHG Emissions (CO2e, millions)3 1,103.7Mt 1,852.9Mt*
Percent of Global Emissions4 3.67% 4.91%*
Tons of CO2 Per Person (Annual)5 1.3T 1.7T*
Percent of World Population6 15.87% 16.88% 17.44% 17.67%
Population (thousands) and Rank7 838,158/16th 1,090,973/2nd 1,326,093/2nd 1,460,743/2nd
C02 Emissions from Energy Use (CO2e, millions) 596.9Mt8 1302Mt9 2,187Mt10 3,293Mt11
C02 Emissions from Land Use Change & Forestry (CO2e, millions) -33.7Mt
Responsibility and Capacity Index12 (Percent of Global) 1.2% 2.3%
G-20 Low Carbon Competitive Index13 (Rank/Index) #17/.48

* 2005 Data

  1. Climate Analysis Indicators Tool (CAIT) Version 6.0. (Washington, DC: World Resources Institute, 2009), GHG emissions from C02, CH4, N20, PFCs, HFC, SF6, excluding Land-Use Change & Forestry. ↩
  2. Ibid ↩
  3. Ibid ↩
  4. Ibid ↩
  5. Ibid ↩
  6. U.S. Census Bureau, International Data Base (IDB) ↩
  7. U.S. Census Bureau, International Data Base (IDB) ↩
  8. CAIT, 1990 C02 Annual Emissions from Energy ↩
  9. CAIT, 2007 Projected CO2 Emissions from Energy Greenhouse Gas Emission Projections, using IEA, World Energy Outlook 2008 data set. ↩
  10. Ibid ↩
  11. Ibid ↩
  12. The Greenhouse Development Rights Framework, The Right to Development in A Climate Constrained World (pdf), p.6, September 2008. ↩
  13. G20 Low Carbon Competitiveness Report. (pdf) ↩

International Climate Policy

With emissions among the lowest per capita in the world, India’s historical negotiation stance in the climate negotiations has been defined by the protection of its citizen’s development rights, and insisting that equity issues between the industrialized and developing remain at the center of the climate negotiations.1 In light of the lack of action by the developing countries, India has often been one of the most vocal and has often taken a hard line position in resisting attempts to broaden the negotiations to include discussion of developing country commitments, and insisting that fairness dictated that commitments be developed on a per capita basis.2

India has recently shown greater engagement in the Copenhagen negotiations, as evidenced by the recent agreement by Prime Minister Singh under the Major Economies Forum in June of this year that acknowledged the need to stay within a 2°C temperature change ecological threshold was an important step forward.  Though the acceptance of the 2°C threshold has been embraced by over 100 other countries, this decision created significant domestic backlash in India by those who claimed India would be forced into a negotiating box to take on reduction commitments.

Despite the domestic political sensitivity, Prime Minister Sign appears committed to a more engaged approach heading into Copenhagen.  India’s Minister of Environment Jairam Ramesh has emerged as a key figure in India’s new approach, while reaffirming that India will not take on binding emission reduction commitments at the international level at this time, recently announced significant domestic initiatives to reduce India’s emissions growth, and has offered to present a report annually to the UN on the implementation of India’s domestic climate and energy plan.

Prior to Copenhagen, India broke important political ground by announcing its intention to adopt  domestic targets to reduce  emissions intensity 20-25% by 2020 (2005 base year), and will incorporated into India 5 year plan.   However, India restated its opposition to efforts to get it to adopt a legally binding emissions, nor will it accept a peaking year emissions that applies to india

Negotiation Bloc:  G-77 & China
Participant In: G20, Major Economies Forum (MEF)

National Clean Energy Policy

National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC—July 2008)

Issued by Prime Ministers Council on Climate Change, defines eight national missions, addressing adaptation as well as mitigation:  solar, energy efficiency, sustainable habitat, water, Himalyan ecosystem, green India, sustainable agriculture, and strategic knowledge.   Makes commitment that India’s emissions per capita will stay below developed countries.

  • India Solar Mission Plan, Approved by Prime Minister August 3rd
  • Climate Legislation/Action Plan: Short Blurb on when and what
  • Current % of Renewable Energy
  • Renewable Energy Target and Energy Efficiency Target
  • Example action/Factoid:  eg: China #1 Ranking in Solar PV Mfg
  • Graph(pie chart) on energy production breakdown (FF/Renewable/Nukes/etc)
  1. Government of India Submission to UNFCC on Long Term Cooperative Action, COP-13, Bali, December 2007. , p.2 paragraph (1) ↩
  2. Climate Change: India’s Options, Devesh Kapur, Radhika Khosla, Pratap Bhanu ↩

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