By IANS
Mumbai : A large number of Indian companies has neither taken up suitable measures nor set datelines to curb emission levels, a study released Thursday said.
The study conducted on the global warming by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a global agency working for a low-carbon economy, said that some Indian firms are aware of the commercial opportunities presented by global warming.
The CDP report said that only a third of the top 110 companies polled had responded to the survey, that sorted information on opportunities and risks from climatic change, emission levels and set strategies to cut pollution.
“An enormous amount of work still needs to be done by these Indian companies, as climate change could hurt some companies that did not respond,” said a top CDP official.
“The survey findings show that many Indian companies did not have risk-management strategies in place, though they were enthusiastic about business opportunities from climate change, including in carbon trading and research and development of new products and technologies,” said Paul Simson of CDP, releasing the report at a function on global warming in Mumbai Thursday.
India, which contributes about four percent of global greenhouse gas emissions as its consumption of fossil fuels rises, has refused to commit to emission targets.
It maintains that it has to use more energy to elevate its millions out of poverty.
Officials maintain India would still emit below five percent of global emission by 2020, which will be lower than the per capita emission of other developed countries.
The report said that enthusiasm of Indian firms is indicative of its appreciation of the commercial potential rather than the depth with which they have engaged with the challenges of climate change.
The study said that power, chemical, steel and cement industries largely account for India’s greenhouse gas emissions.