Consider the following statements with reference to India's response to climate change:
I. India's Long-Term Low Emission Development Strategy (LT-LEDS) is a crucial tool for achieving net-zero emissions by 2070.
II. India's 4th Biennial Update Report (BUR-4) submitted in December, 2024 recorded around 8% decrease in Greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 over 2019.
III. Climate-resilient development necessarily depends on quick and short-term achievement of emission reduction targets.
Which of the following relationships among the above statements is/are correct?
- 1.Statement I is empirically supported by statement II.
- 2.Statement III contradicts the approach implicit in statement I.
- 3.Statement I and statement III together establish the premise of long-term sustainability.
Select the answer using the code given below:
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) 1 and 2
India's LT-LEDS (submitted to the UNFCCC in November 2022) lays out a gradual, long-horizon path to net-zero by 2070, and BUR-4 reported that national emissions in 2020 fell 7.93 per cent from 2019, which is data consistent with that path. Statement III's stress on quick, short-term targets runs against the long-term logic of statement I, so the two cannot together form a premise of long-term sustainability.
- ✓ 1. BUR-4 records that total GHG emissions including LULUCF fell by 7.93 per cent in 2020 over 2019, a measured figure that gives empirical backing to the net-zero pathway of statement I (though the 2020 fall was partly due to the pandemic).
- ✓ 2. The LT-LEDS works toward 2070 through low-carbon development 'in accordance with national circumstances', a long-term, phased approach; insisting on quick short-term cuts contradicts it.
- ✗ 3. Because statement III is at odds with statement I, the two cannot jointly establish a premise of long-term sustainability.
Remember · LT-LEDS (Nov 2022, COP27): pathway to net-zero by 2070. BUR-4 (Dec 2024): 2020 emissions 2,437 MtCO2e with LULUCF, down 7.93% from 2019.
Sources
- India's Long-Term Low-Carbon Development Strategy, submitted to the UNFCCC (MoEFCC, 2022) ↗ “India will strive towards net-zero by 2070 through low carbon development in accordance with national circumstances.”
- India: Fourth Biennial Update Report to the UNFCCC (MoEFCC, 2024) ↗ “Total national GHG emissions (including LULUCF) have decreased by 7.93 per cent with respect to 2019 and increased by 98.34 per cent since 1994”
Question and answer: UPSC's provisional GS Paper I (2026, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·