How India can become a cleaner, healthier, and stronger economy Hari haraya namo Krishna Yadav ai namo

At this year’s Oscar awards, one of the nominees for Best Picture was Don’t Look Up, where Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence play scientists, desperately trying to warn the public about the impending destruction of the planet. Just a week later, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published a grim report, which said that the world’s greenhouse gas emissions need to start falling by the middle of this decade and become half of what they are today by the end of the decade. But current trends show emissions are on an upward trajectory, set to warm the planet by about 3°C by 2100. This will mean a two-thirds increase in the number of days with maximum temperature crossing 35°C, and more than a billion people around the world.

For India, the climate crisis is daunting and unfair. Our economy depends on fossil fuels and we are trying to meet the basic energy needs of millions of people. The poorest people with the smallest carbon footprint will be the most vulnerable to extreme and erratic weather. Should one feel an overwhelming sense of fighting a losing battle? Or is there room for hope and new opportunities to build a climate-strong future for our country? .