BANGKOK: India has recorded its first year-on-year drop in carbon emissions at the national level for nearly 40 years, an outcome that analysts say will strengthen the government’s push to phase out dirty fossil fuels.
Coal demand dropped over the fiscal year, the first year-on-year fall in deliveries in two decades. Demand for oil has been falling since the start of 2019, and has crashed during the period of national lockdown. “India is at a juncture and this time will prompt a rethink into where our investments should be focused going forward. It is very, very likely that India’s emissions will increase but won’t go back to old emission levels,” he said.India has emerged as a force in the solar energy sector - it is the spearhead of the International Solar Alliance and now operates the world’s two largest utility-scale solar parks.
Meantime, operational costs for coal-powered generation is forecast to become higher and eventually economically unviable, a trend occurring across the world. It puts at further risk controversial projects like the mega Carmichael coal mine project planned by India’s Ardani Group close to Australia’s vulnerable Great Barrier Reef.
The politics of pursuing a clean agenda has also never been clearer in India, as the health and environmental impacts of climate change continue to adversely impact the 1.35 billion-strong population.