Session Report
Dolly Kaushik
India stands at a critical juncture in addressing the climate crisis, where the imperatives of development, energy security, climate resilience and social justice increasingly intersect. While the country has undertaken several commitments towards mitigating greenhouse-gas emissions and transitioning towards a low-carbon economy, the impacts of climate change are already being experienced through extreme weather events, agricultural losses, disruptions to livelihoods and growing vulnerabilities among marginalised communities.
Against this backdrop, the session examined the challenges and pathways for addressing the climate crisis in India, with particular emphasis on the need for a just and inclusive transition. The discussion explored India’s climate commitments, institutional and financial constraints, adaptation and resilience, loss and damage, regenerative economies, sustainable agriculture, energy transition and the role of citizens and younger generations in responding to the climate crisis.
Day 6 of the programme marked a return to the speaker who had initiated this journey with us on Day 1. It was particularly meaningful to have Mr. Soumya Dutta, Co-Convener of the South Asian People’s Action on Climate Crisis (SAPACC), New Delhi, with us once again as we concluded the programme. The session was hosted by Ms. Moumita, Researcher at the Impact and Policy Research Institute (IMPRI). Drawing upon his extensive engagement with climate policy, environmental governance and the South Asian climate crisis, Mr. Dutta discussed India’s evolving climate response while highlighting the gap between policy commitments and implementation on the ground.
India’s Climate Commitments and the Global Climate Governance Framework
The session situated India’s climate response within the broader framework of international climate negotiations. India’s participation in global climate governance has evolved through successive international agreements and commitments, culminating in its announcement at the Glasgow Climate Summit in 2021 that the country would achieve net-zero emissions by 2070.
The discussion also highlighted India’s Panchamrit commitments, including increasing non-fossil-fuel power capacity, increasing the share of renewable energy, reducing emissions intensity and expanding carbon sinks. India’s role as an important voice of the Global South was also emphasised, particularly through its engagement with developing countries on issues of climate action, development and climate finance. The speaker further referred to India’s G20 Presidency and the global commitments to expand renewable energy and improve energy efficiency.
However, the session stressed that international commitments need to translate into effective domestic implementation. The gap between policy announcements and actual institutional capacity remains one of the major challenges confronting India’s climate response.
Institutional and Financial Gaps in Climate Action
A significant part of the discussion focused on India’s institutional preparedness to address climate change. In response to a question on whether India’s climate challenges are driven more by financial constraints or institutional weaknesses, Mr. Dutta argued that both factors remain significant.
The speaker pointed towards the institutional structures envisaged under India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change and the subsequent State Action Plans. These mechanisms were intended to provide a pathway through which national climate policies could be translated into state-level and ground-level action. However, the speaker expressed concern that these institutional mechanisms have not been sufficiently strengthened or prioritised.
Alongside institutional weaknesses, inadequate financial resources remain a major constraint. Climate adaptation, mitigation and resilience require substantial and sustained investment, particularly at the local level. The session therefore underscored that ambitious climate targets cannot be achieved merely through policy declarations; they require effective institutions, adequate financing and implementation capacity.
Adaptation, Resilience and the Challenge of Climate Vulnerability
The session moved beyond mitigation to examine the importance of adaptation and resilience. Climate change is already affecting communities across India, particularly farmers, coastal populations, workers and communities dependent on natural resources.
The speaker highlighted that several adaptation measures have existed but have suffered from inadequate government funding. The discussion referred to initiatives such as farm ponds as examples of potentially valuable adaptation interventions whose effectiveness is limited when sufficient financial support is unavailable.
The fiscal constraints faced by state governments were also highlighted. With states having limited fiscal autonomy and substantial dependence on central transfers, their capacity to independently finance climate adaptation and resilience measures remains restricted. This creates a significant challenge because climate impacts are experienced locally, while many of the resources required to address them remain concentrated at higher levels of government.
Loss and Damage and the Question of Climate Justice
One of the most significant themes of the session was loss and damage finance. The discussion emphasised that adaptation alone cannot address all the consequences of climate change. Communities that experience the destruction of homes, agricultural losses or livelihood disruptions require mechanisms through which their economic losses can also be addressed.
The speaker referred to extreme weather events in India that have resulted in deaths, destruction of homes and loss of livelihoods. The experience of farmers facing unexpected rainfall and crop losses was used to demonstrate how climate-related shocks can create a cycle of indebtedness. When agricultural output is destroyed while loans remain outstanding, affected households may face the additional burden of rebuilding their livelihoods while continuing to service existing debt.
In this context, the session argued for stronger public mechanisms for loss and damage finance and greater attention to climate justice. Insurance mechanisms may provide partial assistance, but public financing remains important for communities whose losses are extensive and difficult to address through conventional insurance models.
The speaker also emphasised the importance of India developing a stronger international voice for climate finance for vulnerable communities, linking domestic loss and damage responses with the broader demand for climate justice at the global level.
Regenerative Economies and Community Resilience
The discussion connected climate resilience with the creation of regenerative economic systems. Rather than viewing environmental restoration solely as an ecological objective, the speaker argued that strengthening ecosystems can also generate economic opportunities for communities dependent on natural resources.
The example of communities exercising forest rights and participating in forest regeneration was highlighted to demonstrate how ecological restoration and livelihoods can reinforce each other. Strengthening degraded ecosystems can increase their economic value for communities while simultaneously improving their resilience to climate impacts.
This approach presents climate action as more than an environmental intervention. It connects ecological restoration, livelihood security and community resilience, particularly for communities that depend directly on forests, agriculture and other natural resources.
Just Transition and the Transformation of Agriculture
The session also examined the need for a just transition in agriculture. Farmers cannot be expected to immediately abandon chemical-intensive agricultural practices because doing so without alternatives could result in significant reductions in productivity and income.
Instead, the transition needs to be gradual and supported through appropriate knowledge, finance and institutional assistance. The speaker referred to approaches such as agroecology, natural farming, organic farming and permaculture as potential pathways towards more sustainable agricultural systems.
However, adopting such approaches requires external support. Farmers and other vulnerable communities often lack the financial resources, technical knowledge and connectivity necessary to undertake major transitions independently. Therefore, policy interventions must ensure that sustainability does not become an additional burden imposed upon already vulnerable populations.
The Energy Transition and Emerging Challenges
The session also considered the wider implications of India’s energy transition. While moving towards renewable and cleaner sources of energy is necessary, the transition itself generates new challenges that require careful policy planning.
The increasing demand for digital infrastructure was discussed through the example of data centres and artificial intelligence. Data centres consume substantial amounts of electricity and are becoming increasingly important to India’s digital economy. At the same time, the speaker cautioned against viewing data centres themselves as the problem, noting that modern communication platforms including email, messaging services, social media and online video that depend heavily on data-centre infrastructure.
The discussion consequently highlighted the need to address the energy intensity of digitalisation rather than simply opposing technological development. Cleaner electricity, energy efficiency and improved infrastructure will be necessary to reconcile India’s digital transformation with its climate objectives.
Climate Change, Development and Everyday Behaviour
An important dimension of the discussion was the recognition that climate action cannot depend exclusively on governments and large institutions. Individual consumption patterns and everyday behaviour also contribute to energy demand.
The discussion on online video consumption illustrated how seemingly small individual behaviours can collectively generate significant energy requirements. The speaker used this example to highlight the relationship between digital consumption, data-centre capacity and energy use.
This points towards the broader importance of behavioural change alongside technological and institutional transformation. Climate action therefore requires changes across multiple levels from national policy and infrastructure investment to community practices and individual consumption patterns.
The Role of Youth and Grassroots Engagement
The Q&A session placed particular emphasis on the role of young people in understanding and addressing climate change at the grassroots level.
Responding to a question about how young professionals could engage with climate issues on the ground, Mr. Dutta encouraged younger people to study the experiences of communities directly affected by climate change. Coastal populations, farmers, construction workers and other vulnerable groups require solutions that are practical, affordable and locally appropriate.
The speaker emphasised that many communities do not possess the knowledge, financial resources or institutional connectivity required to implement climate solutions independently. Young professionals and researchers can therefore play an important role by connecting academic knowledge, public discourse and grassroots realities.
The discussion positioned youth engagement as a long-term necessity, given that younger generations will experience and respond to the consequences of climate change for several decades.
Is the Climate Battle Already Lost?
The session concluded with a discussion on the increasingly common argument that the climate battle has already been lost.
Responding to this view, Mr. Dutta acknowledged the seriousness of the situation but rejected the idea that climate action is therefore futile. He noted that crossing the 1.5°C threshold would have serious consequences, with increasing risks of heatwaves, extreme rainfall, flooding, cyclones, sea-level rise, erosion and agricultural losses. However, he argued that every fraction of a degree of warming matters.
The central message was that accepting climate defeat can itself become counterproductive. Even if some climate thresholds are exceeded, stronger action can still reduce the severity of future impacts and prevent even more damaging outcomes. The need, therefore, is for immediate and sustained climate action rather than climate pessimism.
Conclusion
The session provided a critical perspective on India’s response to the climate crisis, moving beyond headline commitments to examine the institutional, financial and social dimensions of climate action. While India’s net-zero commitment and international climate engagements represent important steps, their success will ultimately depend upon effective implementation at the state and grassroots levels.
The discussion demonstrated that climate action must simultaneously address mitigation, adaptation, resilience, loss and damage and social justice. Vulnerable communities cannot be expected to bear the costs of transition without adequate financial, institutional and technological support. Similarly, India’s movement towards a low-carbon economy must account for workers, farmers and communities whose livelihoods are connected to carbon-intensive or climate-sensitive sectors.
The session ultimately underscored that India’s climate transition should be inclusive, participatory and people-centred. Stronger institutions, greater climate finance, community-based solutions, regenerative economies, sustainable agriculture and meaningful youth engagement will be essential to building resilience. While the scale of the climate challenge is immense, the discussion emphasised that continued and accelerated action remains both necessary and capable of shaping a more resilient and equitable future.
Acknowledgement
This report was written by Dolly Kaushik, a research intern at Impact and Policy Research Institute (IMPRI), New Delhi.
Read More at IMPRI:
REVISITING INDIA – BANGLADESH GANGA WATER TREATY (1996)
