With the beginning of COP26 in Glasgow political leaders, activists and news agencies all around the globe are keeping an eye on what the powerful people have to say and what the strategies will be to tackle the climate changes faced by the world.
The COP26 summit’s opening ceremony took place at midday Glasgow time on Monday (5:30 PM IST). Head of the states and governments spoke in between 1:45 PM to 5 PM local time (7:15 PM-10:30 PM IST).
World leaders including US President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Angela Merkel shared their words. Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be attending the summit.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed the delegates in the opening ceremony. He stated,” The doomsday is real, the more we wait the worse it gets.” Following the British United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres shared his concerns and called the G-20 to lead efforts to reduce emission. Prince Charles, Prince of Wales emphasized strengthening the private sector.
What’s India’s Stand?
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced 5 major commitments which he addressed as ‘Amrit Tatva”. He focuses on tackling the devastating effects of climate change and calls for making ‘Lifestyle for Environment’ a global mission.
India is also putting climate change at the centre of its policymaking.
India’s 5 major commitments are as follows:
Commitment 1
India will increase its non-fossil capacity to 500 gigawatts by 2030.
Commitment 2
India will fulfil 50% of its energy requirements with renewable energy.
Commitment 3
From now to the year 2030, India will reduce 1 billion tonnes of its total projected carbon emission.
Commitment 4
India’s economic carbon intensity will reduce to less than 45% by 2030.
Commitment 5
India will achieve the target of net zero emissions by 2070.
The Prime Minister reiterated that developed nations must fulfil the promised $1 trillion as climate finance, saying this should be tracked the same way as climate mitigation.