What Does Paris Climate Agreement Ratification Mean for India?

India ratified the Paris Agreement on Climate Change by depositing the instrument of ratification with the United Nations on 2nd October. The Paris agreement was adopted by 185 nations in December. India had joined over 170 countries in signing the pact in April that brought together developing and developed nations for beginning work on cutting down greenhouse gas emissions to combat global warming. It asks both rich and poor countries to take action to curb the rise in global temperatures that is melting glaciers, raising sea levels and shifting rainfall patterns. It requires governments to present national plans to reduce emissions to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius. The draft of the Paris climate change agreement has left the Indian government and its negotiators upset: It ignores many submissions by developing countries, breaches India's non-negotiable red lines and is inimical to the country's interests. Money will be a big challenge for India, which says it will require over $2.5 trillion to meet all of its targets. It says it will achieve the targets only if other countries give it money and discounts on new technology.

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