India sets 2070 as target for net-zero carbon emissions

(Image credit: Alastair Grant/AFP via Getty Images)

published 2 November 2021

India has now set a deadline for when it will reach net zero emissions: the year 2070.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the announcement Monday during the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow, less than a week after the country declined to set a target date. The United States, China, and India are the world's biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, and during his speech at the summit, Modi pointed out that India has 17 percent of the planet's population but is responsible for 5 percent of global emissions.

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It's not just greenhouse gas emissions that need to be put in check, Modi said during his speech. He called on people to live more sustainable lives, thinking about the choices they make when it comes to their diets and how items they buy are packaged. "Instead of mindless and destructive consumption, we need mindful and deliberate utilization," he said. "These choices, made by billions of people, can take the fight against climate change on step further."

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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