观点气候变化

India is overlooking the climate drag on its economic growth

The country’s climate-neutral GDP forecasts require urgent revision

The writer is the founder and chief executive of AlphaGeo and author of ‘The Future is Asian’

The November COP29 summit ended predictably: a last-minute, watered-down commitment to support developing countries in their urgent climate adaptation efforts was delivered. India’s delegate then led the equally predictable outcry with a fiery diatribe against the paltry sums promised. India is right to worry: it is facing a combustible mix of climate volatility and demographic vulnerability from being an overpopulated poor country.

There is a widespread consensus that India will be the world’s fastest-growing large economy for the next decade and perhaps beyond. The World Bank recently upped its growth forecast for the country from 6.6 per cent to 7 per cent in the fiscal year to next March 31. Yet India still faces major economic headwinds such