Indian PM Modi sets India on course for net-zero by 2070

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced 2070 as a target for India to reach net-zero carbon emissions, speaking at the COP26 Summit.

Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla has said that India's new net-zero emissions target by 2070, announced at the 26th session of the COP-26 in Glasgow, is based on "scientific projection".

PM Modi has now set a target of 500 gigawatts and he is not doing it under any pressure. "The only pressure on him is the pressure of humanity, the pressure of our future, and I think that is very, very important," Shringla said in a briefing about India's National Statement at the COP26 Summit in Glasgow.

PM Modi's announcement on net-zero emissions is "very significant for India and the rest of the world."

During his COP26 address on November 1, Prime Minister Modi announced five "amrit tatva" including the target to attain net-zero emissions by 2070.

"India will take its non-fossil energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030. Second, India will meet 50 per cent of its energy requirements from renewable energy by 2030. Third, India will reduce the total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonnes by 2030. Fourth, by 2030, India will reduce the carbon intensity of its economy to less than 45 per cent. And fifth - by 2070, India will achieve the target of net-zero emissions," PM Modi said.

(ANI)