India, the world's third-largest greenhouse gas emitter, said Thursday it is committed to tackling global warming but vowed to protect its interests at the latest round of UN climate talks in Lima. "We will walk with confidence with our own aggressive actions on climate change," India's environment minister Prakash Javadekar told Indian television network NDTV on the eve of his departure for the Peruvian capital.
United States and China, the world's top two emitters of carbon dioxide, signed a landmark deal last month to work together to cut their carbon footprint. India's economy still is far behind that of China and government officials have argued in the past that this is why the South Asian country should not be obliged to curtail its carbon emissions. But with air pollution reaching alarming levels in Indian cities, pressure is mounting on the new right-wing government elected in May to improve air quality. "We are growing and walking the energy-efficiency path," said Javadekar. The government led by Narendra Modi is a strong proponent of solar power. The Indian minister insisted that India is "not the odd man out" in wake of the agreement between China and the United States.
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