Dear EB reader,
There is no corner of India untouched by climate change, from crippling water shortages in Bengaluru to flooding in Chennai and the notorious air pollution in New Delhi. But as our lead story reveals, the climate narrative is strangely absent from political discourse as the world's largest democracy heads for the polls. Neither the incumbent administration nor the political opposition have built any kind of electoral narrative around climate action.
This is concerning. Though India, under the leadership of Narendra Modi, has made ambitious decarbonisation commitments, the country is among the world's most vulnerable to climate change.
Rising temperatures, changing rainfall patterns, declining groundwater levels, retreating glaciers, cyclones and sea-level rise could also cost India 4.5 per cent of GDP by 2030. Though India's electorate can't be expected to lead the charge for climate action when many basic needs are not being met – poverty alleviance and governance will be the dominant election issues – India cannot afford not to talk about climate change when choosing a new leader.
