The UN Secretary General António Guterres’s call for India to give up coal immediately and reduce emissions by 45% by 2030 is a call to de-industrialise the country and abandon the population to a permanent low-development trap.

At the latest count by the non-profit Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), at the beginning of April, 32 countries had declared, in some documented form , their proposed intention to achieve carbon neutral status by mid-century or thereabouts. Of these, only eight have any firm status, the rest being in the form of proposed legislation or mentions in policy documents.

What has become clear since the lockdown began is that state governments have taken the lead in the absence of a clear plan by the Centre, which seems to be on the lookout for more political capital, as usual.
Modi govt lacks strategic vision in fight against COVID-19

As India enters day 17 of a nation-wide lockdown that began on March 25, three aspects of the Government of India's approach to dealing with the COVID-19 crisis has become increasingly clear.