India jumps 2 spots up to 8th rank on Climate Change Performance Index

India’s position improved by two ranks on this year’s Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI). Published by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and Climate Action Network International based in Germany, the CCPI measures a country’s progress towards tackling climate change problems. This year’s CCPI was published during the United Nations Climate Change Conference or COP27, with the top three spots on the ranking still remaining unoccupied due to no country has done enough to get the requisite score. The UK was at ranked 11, the European Union secured the 19th rank, France was ranked 28th, and China and the US at rank 51 and 52.

The index measures the performance of 59 countries, which account for 90 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. The index considers GHG Emissions, Renewable Energy, Energy Use, and Climate Policy. The weightage is as follows: GHG Emissions – 40 percent of the overall score, Renewable Energy – 20 percent of the overall score, Energy Use – 20 percent of the overall score and Climate Policy – 20 percent of the overall score.

The latest report shows Denmark, Sweden, Chile and Morocco ranked as 4th, 5th, 6th and 7^th, respectively with India at the 8th position. India is the highest-ranked G-20 nation on the index. The report ranked India highly in the GHG Emissions and Energy Use categories, with middling scores for the Climate Policy and Renewable Energy categories. The index’s report states that with current measures India looks to be on track to meet its 2030 emissions targets, which are sufficient for keeping the global rise of temperatures below 2°C. However, the report was critical of India’s continued reliance on fossil fuels and its plans to increase fossil fuel production by 2030.

“India is among the nine countries responsible for 90 percent of global coal production. It also plans to increase its oil, gas, and oil production by over 5 percent by 2030. This is incompatible with the 1.5°C target,” the report said. The 1.5°C target is the benchmark to prevent large-scale changes in Earth’s environment, ecosystem and more due to climate change.