THE UNSEEN TRAIL: From your daily choices to India’s Climate Mission

Everything that is today contributing towards development has an overlooked backstory, just like carbon footprint. Our day to day life choices and comfort standards are all products for carbon emission. Humans have set the bar so high, that living without carbon emission is no more a choice. From the so called essential technology to the fancy appliances, all result in leaving behind a trail of carbon. Being inevitable, this carbon load is one of the major reasons behind climate change. Now that carbon emission is unavoidable, one can still try making a difference by creating awareness. Turning awareness into change, all we need to make are small changes that turn out to give effective outcomes. 

Travelling Alternatives: Using public transport, car pooling and promoting usage of cycles for shorter rides can remarkably cut down personal carbon output. 

Switching to eco friendly: Promoting eco friendly alternatives and making them a choice can clearly make a difference. Choosing the right food choices, reducing consumption of meat and dairy, switching to local and seasonal foods is important to shrink carbon emission.

 Creating awareness: Supporting urban policies or simply sharing a word and educating people around can make a huge impact. Creating awareness also includes motivating others and convincing people to incline towards sustainability.

INDIA’S PATH TO NET ZERO: MAKING IT A REALITY

One must wonder what possible impact our tiny efforts may have on the climate or ecology, yet we frequently forget that while we may be a drop in the ocean, collectively we can make a big difference. It is our job to contribute to our nation’s mission for a greener future. India aims for a better and more sustainable future for its people, and it is our job to ensure that goal’s achievement.

India has made a powerful pledge in accordance to the Paris Agreement to lesson the Emissions intensity of its GDP by 45% by 2030 in comparison to 2005. “Emissions Intensity of GDP” refers to the volume of greenhouse gases emitted to produce one unit of a country’s GDP, and a reduction in it means that India will release 45% less pollution than it did in the past. This is paving the way for the long-term objective of achieving a Net-Zero emission target by 2070.

This doesn’t mean zero emissions but rather balancing the amount of greenhouse gases the country puts into the atmosphere with the amount it removes. You must wonder why not just “zero emissions”? That’s because achieving that in a modern economy is nearly impossible. Essential sectors like agriculture or pharmaceuticals will likely always produce some emissions, so it’s better to balance them with a Net-Zero strategy.

For fueling that growth, we’re committed to a massive transformation of our energy sector, promising to get 50% of our electricity from non-fossil fuel sources and establish a supplementary carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalent through increased forest and tree cover by 2030.

We are very close to achieving that. For example in the year 2020, the emission intensity of GDP was reduced by 36%, and as of October 2024, non-fossil fuels like wind, solar, and hydropower constituted 46.52% of installed electricity generation capacity. From 2005 to 2021, India has successfully increased its tree and forest canopy to 25.17% of the total geographical area of the country, creating a natural carbon sink that absorbed 2.29 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide. The air is getting cleaner, mainly because of reduced emissions and the growth of forests.

We can see that a significant portion of our 2030 goals have already been achieved, which showcases that transformation is feasible. And we should keep this momentum going by choosing sustainability and educating others. This is important not only for government policy but because we and our coming generations deserve a better environment, and cleaner air to breathe. The Greener India we dream of depends entirely on the decisions you and I are making today, so choose wisely.

Reference:

1. Press Information Bureau (PIB). India Submits its Fourth Biennial Update Report to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Published Jan 2, 2025. https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2089589.

2. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). India Updated First Nationally Determined Contribution Under Paris Agreement. Submitted Aug 26, 2022. https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/NDC/2022-08/India%20Updated%20First%20Nationally%20Determined%20Contrib.pdf.

3. Press Information Bureau (PIB). India is Committed to Achieve the Net Zero Emissions Target by 2070. Published Sep 26, 2024. https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx PRID=1961797.

4. https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/science/causes-effects-climate-change?hl=en-IN

5. https://www.un.org/en/actnow/ten-actions