India unfolds priorities in Belem but yet to show its climate cards

The 30th edition of the Conference of Parties (COP), the world’s biggest climate summit, kicked off on November 10 on the edge of the Amazon tropical rainforests in Brazil against the backdrop of violent typhoons striking Jamaica, Vietnam, and the Philippines, and pollutants sending Delhi’s air quality index beyond a life-threatening 400 level.

- S DINAKAR

Two days into the summit in Belem, Brazil has tried to bring over 50,000 registered delegates from 194 countries under a common platform to push developed nations to act on climate-finance pledges made at previous Conferences of Parties (COPs) and create a fund for tropical deforestation.

Brazil's focus here is less on framing new climate policies but more on finding funds for nations struggling to adapt to climate change.

It will create programmes to compensate countries for loss and damage, climate experts said. Both issues lie close to India’s interests.

Transparency on adaptation finance by developed nations and the provision for additional funds to adjust to climate catastrophes are India’s key priorities for negotiation in Belem while opposing measures for additional reporting for adaptation progress, according to a submission to the United Nations (UN).

India is ninth among the 10 most affected nations by extreme weather events, according to the Climate Risk Index 2026 report by Germanwatch. That makes it imperative for India to get a fair share of funds for adaptation, said Vishwas Chitale, fellow at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water, on Zoom from Belem. There were nearly 430 such events in India over three decades ending 2024, causing economic losses of $170 billion, more than 80,000 fatalities, and affecting 1.3 billion people, the report said.

The year 2025 is among the three hottest years on record, accompanied by a record-breaking glacier loss, lowest Arctic sea ice, and a record increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide from 2023-24, according to the World Meteorological Organization.