COP 21: India has made strides in tackling climate change, TERI chief Ajay Mathur

In one of the steps to tackle climate change, India signed the Paris climate accord. India has made strides towards providing “real solutions” to tackle climate change, TERI Director General Ajay Mathur said today, a day after the country signed the Paris accord along with more than 170 nations.

“Since the finalisation of the Paris Accord, India has already made strides towards providing real solutions to the very real problems of climate change. As a developing nation, we have found that growth has presented us with a great opportunity to set in motion our strategies for addressing climate change,” said Mathur, who is also a member of the Prime Minister’s Council on Climate Change.

He said in its journey towards sustainable growth which ensures protection of the planet against climate change, India has learnt that real-time data and human and institutional capacity are absolutely necessary for proper implementation of any plan.

“These can be further strengthened when nations are able to learn from each other, share and build on each other’s experiences and lend support, whether financial or in terms of expertise. Going forward, India believes these will be instrumental towards the success of our common goal of ensuring just climate action,” he said.

India had yesterday signed the historic Paris climate agreement along with more than 170 nations, marking a significant step that has brought together developing and developed countries for beginning work on cutting down greenhouse gas emissions to combat global warming.

Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar signed the agreement in the UN General Assembly hall at a high-level ceremony hosted by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Elaborating India’s initiatives, Mathur said one of the country’s first efforts to be rolled out has been the market-based LED lighting initiative.

Since initiation of the programme, India has completed the replacement of 100 million incandescent bulbs with LEDs which has led to a “major” reduction in carbon footprint by cutting nearly 25 million tons of carbon dioxide. Mathur said another initiative that India has implemented is the Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT initiative) which mandates the most intensive industrial plants to reduce their energy consumption over a three-year cycle.

“I am proud to announce that the first cycle has already surpassed targets, reducing over 30 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions,” he said.

He said TERI has tried to do its part in this effort by providing technical inputs to the government for the preparation of the National Action Plans on Climate Change and the identification of targets for climate change action.

“In the policy arena, TERI focuses on a range of issues by which institutional and policy changes could be brought about to promote action that would generate activities in the direction of sustainability.

“TERI’s programmes have brought research to life, as we have, and will continue to, help to promote scientific understanding of the drivers of climate change and provide solutions by which this growing challenge can be met effectively,” he said.