India has set ambitious medium- and long-term renewable energy targets to counteract the adverse effects of climate change, one of them being the commitment to increase the share of its renewable power capacity to 50% by 2030.

To summarise, it will take more than a shiny day and a multitude of arrayed solar panels for India to be energy-independent without compromising on the quality of life.

In line with last year’s commitment to achieving net zero by 2070, India, at its pavilion at the 27th session of the Conference of Parties or COP27 is talking about a climate-friendly, sustainable lifestyle. As renewable energy (RE) plays a huge role in cutting down GHG emissions, the country has already pledged to have 500 GW of non-fossil-fuel-based capacity by 2030.

Low-cost sensors (LCSs) have revolutionized the air pollution monitoring landscape. However, the sensitivities of particulate matter (PM) LCS measurements to various particle microphysical properties and meteorological aspects warrant an accuracy investigation. We investigated the inter- and intracity variations in the accuracy of LCS-measured PM2.5 across geographically and demographically distinct Indian cities.

While carbon taxes can disproportionately hurt the poor, governments can plough back some of this revenue to mitigate inequities, while incentivising low-carbon technological alternatives.

The inclusion of loss and damage (L&D) to the COP27 agenda is a positive first step in achieving climate justice. While vulnerable nations have been fighting for its inclusion into global discourses for decades, the recent climate-induced disasters across the world, especially in Pakistan, have played a pivotal role in its induction.

At the ongoing United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP27, India released its long-term low-carbon development strategies. Low-carbon development of India’s electricity systems is crucial because the power sector accounts for 45% of the country’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (based on emission estimates published by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change). The power sector is a key driver for decarbonising nearly all major energy-intensive sectors as it enables the shift to renewable energy-based electricity from the current fossil fuel–based processes.

Call for action on climate finance, international technology transfer, and capacity building is India’s central agenda at COP 27 and has been our focus at past COPs as well. So far, there is some information and discussion and certain action points on climate finance; however, there is little clarity with respect to technology transfer mechanisms and capacity building.