By Arun Kumar, IANS
Washington : India has asked developed countries to walk the talk on climate change and stop harping on standards “benchmarks” to let developing countries play their part through agreed flexibility mechanisms.
“An absolutely clear imperative is that developed countries walk the talk on GHG (Green House Gas reductions),” R. Chidambaram, principal scientific advisor to the Indian government, told a US-sponsored international climate change in Honolulu Thursday.
“There has to be a clear understanding that developing countries have small individual carbon footprints and their overriding priority has to remain poverty eradication and addressing adaptation,” said the leader of the Indian delegation to the second Major Economics Meeting on Energy Security and Climate Change.
“Developing countries including India, are playing a part in the international action on mitigation especially through the flexibility mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol as also taking nationally appropriate action on mitigation,” he said.
Expressing concern over suggestions on setting standard “benchmarks” for various technology sectors, Chidambaram said: “Such benchmarking would be premature for developing countries – smaller players have to catch up.
“Moreover, we should not put the cart before the horse. If technologies are transferred properly, standards would automatically be achieved.”
Asking the participants to “sculpt our ideas and proposals on climate change within the provisions and principles of the Framework Convention,” Chidambaram made a strong plea for the “spirit of common but differentiated responsibilities” to pervade their deliberations.
Expressing concern that the agenda did not emphasise the special need to support developing countries, he said: “The group of large economies representing both developed and developing countries should be able to discuss issues of relevance to both but within the clearly identified building blocks and other details negotiated at Bali.”
Noting the Bali Action Plan is about long term cooperative action to enable full, effective and sustained implementation of the Framework Convention, Chidambaram asked the participants to do “without suggestions for additions, including on competitiveness etc., which are the subject matter of discussions elsewhere.”
The major economies process is well placed to contribute to the building block of technology with both its components, he said suggesting, “If knowledge is already available and technology is already developed, it should be transferred to the developing countries.”
“If the process of knowledge generation is still on, there should be scientific and technological cooperation between the developed and developing countries and in this India will be more than happy to contribute,” Chidambaram said.
Noting the prospect of rapid depletion of fossil fuels are now driving the global development of energy related technologies like renewables, efficiency and nuclear, he said: “Development of each technology is complex.”
“There is need for closing the nuclear fuel cycle,” Chidambaram said, suggesting the response to climate change needs to be technology based and discussion on technology was necessary.
The setting of standard “benchmarks” goal needs to be realistic, apart from being based on a scientific consensus at a far higher spatial level than the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
It should also take into account, historical cumulative emissions, per-capita emissions and the sustainable development needs of developing countries and be guided by Article 2 of the UN Framework Convention in its entirety, he said.
“The issue of a long term goal is, however, linked to issues of equity, Chidambaram said. “We believe that an equal per-capita entitlement to equal sustainable development is unassailable to ensure fairness and recognition that the earth’s atmosphere is our common heritage to which all of us have an equal claim.”
Noting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s determination to not let India’s per-capita emissions exceed those of developed countries even as it pursues growth and development, he said: “This offer is, of course, a challenge to us but it also throws up a challenge to the developed countries and requires sharing of technology.”
India was glad that Germany, France and Britain have accepted the importance of convergence in per-capita emissions for developing and developed countries.
“We would be happy to work with like-minded countries to develop this paradigm in a manner that also ensures accelerated growth and empowerment in the developing countries,” Chidambaram said.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee led the Indian delegation at the first US-sponsored meeting of the world’s 17 major economies in Washington last September.