Climate: India prides itself on being the “champion” of the countries of the South but does not want to do without coal

Emmanuel Macron's visit to India continues. It will also be about climate and the fight against global warming. The country prides itself on being a good student and poses as a “champion” of the countries of the South, but the picture is in reality more mixed.

In the Dhanbad district of the state of Jharkhand. India cannot and does not want to do without its coal. ©Sanjib DUTTA/AFP

By: RFI Follow

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The image was beautiful in Dubai. Narendra Modi at the podium during COP28 widely applauded by the meeting participants. The Indian Prime Minister has just announced his country's candidacy to organize COP33. India is a “

model

” he repeats: 17% of the world population for only 4% of emissions.

Underestimated figures

But there you go, these figures are a little underestimated. We are closer to 8% and above all on an upward dynamic. The country is - in fact - paying the price for its dependence on coal. Almost half of its energy depends on it. Three quarters of its electricity depends on it. And, taken together, all of this makes India the world's third largest emitter of carbon dioxide.

Dynamism in renewables

On the other hand, the government highlights its dynamism in terms of installing renewable energies. Real dynamism because the country has quintupled its capacities in ten years, but it is still insufficient. The country cannot do without its coal and does not want to. Also

at

COP28

, it was its Minister of Energy who said it bluntly: India will not take this path.

International reportIndia: between dazzling growth and social disparities

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