Warming up

Jairam Ramesh is an impressive quick change artist. After sassing Hillary Clinton and insisting that India would do nothing that deflected from its high growth path,the environment minister declared in New York that India is looking to play a dealmaker at Copenhagen,not a deal-breaker,and would commit to a domestically-driven action plan. He sought to stress and expand areas of consensus,like the clean development mechanism,emissions credits for forest protection,and tech transfer. The climate action project has long been chucked back and forth between the US and China India to a lesser extent,each demanding that the other be held to stringent targets first. Putting an end to this pehle aap farce,and projecting India as a resourceful,responsible leader in climate change challenges is clever positioning.

The developing countries stand is unexceptionable as the South African environment minister put it,demanding painful cuts is like being called right at the end of an elaborate,multi-course meal with developed nations,only managing to drink coffee and then being asked to split the entire bill. The UNFCC does not require developing countries to accept binding targets because we have different needs as our negotiators keep reminding the world,getting electricity to everyone in India is patently a bigger priority. On the other hand,India stands to suffer enormously from climate change this is not exclusively an exercise in wrangling the best deal for the country,because the Indian poor are most vulnerable to crops and water trouble,pollution,and disease associated with a warming world.

So voluntary steps are a no-brainer,and India should play a role commensurate with its capacities. Even China is proving to be a formidable climate change warrior. For instance,its fuel economy standard for a passenger car is about 36.7 mph. President Hu announced a series of hefty mitigation measures in New York. India has also announced the most ambitious solar energy plan in the world,and committed to a mandatory fuel efficiency cap to begin in 2011,an energy-efficient building code to start by 2012,and a switch in its energy mix renewable sources will account for 20 per cent of our power use by 2020. These are not just elaborate PR moves,they are going to be built into the law. India also needs to quantify its achievements,because we have to present this report card to the world if we expect payback in terms of financial or technological help. Instead of being perceived as draggy of foot and blind to the immediate peril of its own situation,India has upped its own profile for Copenhagen,and made a tangible move towards securing its own citizens for the future.