Climate formula at talks: Binding cuts for India by 2020

Under the compromise,while India and China agreed to bring themselves under a governing treaty,the developed nations agreed to a second commitment period under the Kyoto Protocol. The protocol remains the only legally binding treaty for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. China and India have been exempt because they are developing countries,while the US has opted out.

During the conference,the EU had pushed hard for a roadmap to a new,legally binding treaty against resistance from India and China. Am I to write a blank cheque and sign away the livelihood of 1.2 billion Indians,without even knowing what the EU roadmap contains? asked Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan.

The final text of the Durban conference said parties would develop a protocol,another legal instrument or an agreed outcome with legal force,averting the use of legally binding.