Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Delhi facing climate emergencies; sustainable development need of hour: Revanth Reddy

Speaking during a session titled Accelerating Sub-National Climate Action: Key to Advancing Sub-National Economic Growth, Reddy said that post-Covid, rainfall in Hyderabad had increased drastically in the past five years. The average rainfall recorded in Hyderabad stood at 2 cm in 24 hours till 2020, but the city has been recording 40 cm of rainfall in a two-hour period since 2020, he added.

“From the time of independence till the early 1990s, our country focused largely on the aspects of irrigation and education. Later in the mid 1990s, liberalisation was introduced, and we focused on investment reserves and building our economy for the next three decades. Now, post-2020, our focus should be development coupled with sustainability because of the climate emergency and dealing with it is the need of the hour,” Reddy said.

Suman Bery, Vice-Chairperson, NITI Aayog, said that one cannot separate growth from inclusion in a democratic setup now. “Cities are the new frontier for growth and jobs. Therefore, the fact that how cities position themselves in the lines of sustainability is important because it’s on the basis of the position that they take up, political thoughts will be given,” Bery said.

Also present on the dais was Charity Kathambi Chepkwony, an MP from Kenya, which in 2016 became the first nation to enact a climate change law.