(MENAFN- Live Mint) India, the world's third-largest carbon emitter, has yet to submit its climate action agenda - a delay that became a key talking point at the United Nations' COP30 summit, which concluded on Friday, 21 November, in Belém, Brazil.

India's five-year submissions, known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), are meant to set more ambitious emission-cut targets. So far, as many as 120 of the 196 member countries of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)have submitted their updated climate plans.

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The 2015 Paris Agreement aims to keep global warming well below 2°C and ideally to 1.5°C. According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), meeting those goals will require cutting annual emissions by 35% to 55% by 2035 compared with 2019 levels.

India is commonly counted as the third-largest emitter of Carbon Dioxide (CO2), after China and the United States. Some Indian officials, however, argue that focusing solely on total emissions overlooks this per capita context. Its per capita emissions are relatively low - around 2 tonnes per person.

The formal deadline for submitting the updated NDCs for the 2035 cycle was 10 February 2025. However, the UNFCCC allowed an extended cut-off until September 2025.

When will India submit its climate action plan?

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yada, who led the Indian delegation in Belem, told the media this week that Delhi would submit its updated nationally determined contributions (NDCs) by December.

India and Saudi Arabia are the only two G20 nations yet to release their updated NDCs for the COP30 summit. The NDC document lists each country's climate action commitments under the Paris Agreement and is released every five years.

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India is commonly counted as the third-largest emitter of CO2 (and greenhouse gases), after China and the United States. Some Indian officials, however, argue that focusing solely on total emissions overlooks this per capita context. Its per capita emissions are relatively low - around 2 tonnes per person
(AP)

“We will declare our revised NDCs till 2035 and also the first Biennial Transparency Report,” Yadav said.

Asked why India hadn't submitted its updated NDC document, Yadav said it wasn't because of missing any deadline.“There are several steps, including cabinet approval, before the document is released,” he said.

India had in 2022 declared its first NDC -of achieving an emission intensity of its GDP (gross domestic product) by 45% by 2030 from the 2005 levels. Emissions intensity of GDP refers to the amount of carbon dioxide emission produced per unit of GDP-a measure to evaluate how efficiently an economy uses carbon-based resources to generate economic output.

Sign of displeasure, say climate experts

Experts say the delay may be a sign of India's displeasure with a lack of progress toward funding global climate priorities.

The country is considered a key player in global efforts to combat pollution and mitigate global warming, particularly as the administration of US President Donald Trump has shied away from climate negotiations. But India has surprised observers as one of the few large countries yet to send the UN its formal climate plan, known as a Nationally Determined Contribution, or NDC, news agency AP said.

Non-fossil fuel sources of energy account for more than half of India's electricity capacity, which has achieved some of its climate goals for the decade ending in 2030, five years ahead of schedule, the agency said.

The lack of India's official climate goal has been a big topic of discussion at COP30, Aarti Khosla, founder of the climate consultancy Climate Trends, told AP.

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While India over-delivered on its previously set climate goals, Khosla said not releasing its new climate goals may have a negative impact on the country's international posturing at the conference, especially as it bids to host the 2028 climate talks.

Why is India delaying its agenda?

India experienced the largest increase in greenhouse gas emissions in 2024 compared to the previous year, followed by China and Indonesia, according to the recent UN Emissions Gap Report.

Demand for More Climate Finance: India is pressing rich countries to provide much more funding and technology support, not just the modest commitments made so far, reports said

New Delhi has also been a vocal critic of a deal reached at the previous climate talks, which called for countries to provide $300 billion for climate-related needs, saying the sum is too low, according to the news agency AP.

Earlier this week at COP30, Minister Yadav called for wealthy countries to“deliver new, additional, and concessional climate finance at a scale of trillions, not billions.”

Historically, India has advocated for the principle of 'equity,' which holds that developed countries, having emitted the most, should bear a greater share of the burden.

Clearly, New Delhi appears keen to highlight a view shared by many developing nations: that rich countries bear historic responsibility to slash emissions and provide far greater financial support to the developing world, a BBC report said.

Endless Discussions Alone: A week before COP30 kicked off, Yadav wrote an opinion piece in a national newspaper arguing that "global climate progress can't come from endless discussions alone".

"For too long, the world has been caught in a cycle of negotiations, while the planet's distress signal grows louder. While dialogue is important, action is imperative," he wrote.

The BBC report stated that India has maintained it shouldn't be pressured into a more ambitious climate plan, as it has already met a key pledge - to have 50% of its installed electricity capacity from non-fossil fuel sources - years ahead of the 2030 deadline.

Coal Dependency: India still relies heavily on coal for its energy needs; the transition away from coal is politically and economically sensitive.

Also Read | Will the COP30 summit offer a breakthrough in fighting the climate crisis?

Climate Action Tracker - an independent scientific project that tracks government climate action and measures it against the globally agreed Paris agreement - pointed out recently that coal's share in India's total electricity generation continues to be around 75%, while it must drop to at least 19% to align the country's climate action with the global goal of limiting temperature rise to 1.5C.

India committed to domestic adaptation: Yadav

India is committed to domestic adaptation as part of climate action, but there is an urgent need for a scaled-up adaptation finance as the global gap widens, Minister Yadav said on 20 November at the COP30

Yadav also said that the annual climate summit, COP30, must deliver a clear political message that“adaptation is not an optional add-on but an essential investment.”

Adaptation is not an optional add-on but an essential investment.

“The 2025 Adaptation Gap Report estimates that developing countries will need between USD 310-365 billion annually by 2035, while current flows are around USD 26 billion only,” he said during his intervention at the Baku High-Level Dialogue on Adaptation on Thursday at the COP30 summit.

(With agency inputs)

Key Takeaways

• India's delay in submitting updated NDCs raises questions about its climate priorities.
• The country emphasises the need for developed nations to provide substantial climate finance.
• India's reliance on coal remains a significant barrier to achieving its climate goals.

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