India only nation with low energy use and high economic growth

New Delhi, May 28 (UNI) Declaring that India would accept no legal mandate to cut down its carbon emissions, the Ministry of Environment today pointed out that it was the only country that had not increased its energy consumption in proportion to its economic growth.

''As against the average growth rate of around eight per cent, the primary energy growth in India has been only 2.6 per cent annually. No country has achieved this kind of delinking,'' Secretary, Environment Pradipto Ghosh told a news conference here.

The check on energy consumption has been possible because of the wide range of policies promoting its sustainable use, he said.

Replying to a question on the Government response to the climate change, he said the acceptance of any obligation to cut emission of greenhouse gases would adversely affect the country's economic growth.

''Historically, it is the developing countries who have been responsible for greatest emission of greenhouse gases,'' he pointed out but said that did not mean that India did not recognise the threat of the climate change to the world as whole and to its own economy.

The country was taking all possible steps to cut down energy consumption and bring in energy efficiency in every department.

At present it was spending 2.17 per cent of its GDP on addressing issues related to climate variability.

India's energy consumption should be seen in the context of the fact that it was a huge country, having a massive population whose primary needs have to be fulfilled, said Dr Ghosh.

Developing countries like India and China have so far been under no international obligations to cut down emission of greenhouse gases, but after the publication of a recent UN panel report that the climate change was imminent in the near future and that it has been caused by global warming due to human activities, pressure on these countries was increasing to accept some mandatory cuts.

UNI