Policy Options for India's Green and Low-Carbon Strategy

India has made significant progress towards meeting its emissions reductions targets under the Paris Agreement, but with current policies, total GHG emissions would nonetheless increase by more than 40 percent by 2030[1]. To achieve a green and low-carbon strategy, India can consider the following policy options:

1. Gradual increase in subsidies on the use of renewable energy coupled with higher taxes on emissions[1].

2. Scaling up current policies, including targeted policies that India has focused on, to achieve an alternative emissions trajectory[1].

3. Pursuing development goals according to national circumstances while adopting clean energy, which will accelerate the transition to net zero while saving lives, boosting fiscal revenues, and promoting energy security[1].

4. Pursuing more than 100 decarbonization levers across key sectors, including green hydrogen, carbon capture, usage, and storage (CCUS), natural climate solutions, and material circularity[3].

5. Empowering companies to play on the front foot, evaluating investment[3].

6. Reducing emission intensity by 20-25% [4].

7. Developing a national campaign to empower, educate, and enable more than 100 million farmers in adopting precision agriculture to reduce agriculture emissions[5].

India has the potential to create 287 gigatons of carbon space for the world, which amounts to almost half of the global carbon budget for an even chance at limiting warming to 1.5°C[3]. If policies are set in place to create the right demand signals within this decade, then India could add low-carbon capacities in the next two decades thereafter[3]. A Green New Deal for a net-zero India can save lives, catalyze entire new industries, create millions of jobs, drive trillions of dollars of economic value, and provide a significant heft to India’s role in the frontline of the global war on climate change[5].

Citations:

[1] India Can Balance Curbing Emissions and Economic Growth - International Monetary Fund https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2023/03/06/cf-india-can-balance-curbing-emissions-and-economic-growth

[2] [PDF] India's Long-Term Low-Carbon Development Strategy - UNFCCC https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/India_LTLEDS.pdf

[3] Decarbonising India: Charting a pathway for sustainable growth - McKinsey https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/sustainability/our-insights/decarbonising-india-charting-a-pathway-for-sustainable-growth

[4] [PDF] The Final Report of the Expert Group on Low Carbon Strategies for Inclusive Growth | CSTEP https://cstep.in/drupal/sites/default/files/2019-01/CSTEP_RR_Low_Carbon_Strategies_for_Inclusive_Growth_final_report_2014.pdf

[5] [PDF] Mission 2070: A Green New Deal for a Net Zero India - www3 .weforum .org /docs /WE https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Mission_2070_A_Green_New_Deal_for_a_Net_Zero_India_2021.pdf

[6] What Does "Net-Zero Emissions" Mean? 8 Common Questions, Answered - World Resources Institute https://www.wri.org/insights/net-zero-ghg-emissions-questions-answered