India's per capita carbon emissions less than half global average, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said developing countries are often unfairly blamed for carbon emissions while the fact is that developed nations have six times more per capita carbon emissions compared to India.

Inaugurating an international conference on the environment and climate here, the prime minister also said that whenever he takes forward work on nuclear energy generation, people who always talk about the environment will move court to stop it.

"We all know that the responsibility for carbon emissions has often been wrongly placed on developing countries. While the historical truth is that even today, India's contribution to per capita carbon emissions is less than half of the global average," he said at the two-day event being attended by environmental experts, Supreme Court judges, legal experts and senior government officials.

Modi said developed nations have six times more per capita carbon emissions compared to India and New Delhi strongly presents this fact on global platforms.

"And I would say to every Indian: You too say this forcefully," he said.

The prime minister said India is working with the rest of the world and is setting new standards for environmental protection.

He said that India is focusing on renewable energy and is the only nation in G20 that has already fulfilled its Paris (COP 21) commitments, well before its timeline.

"This is the power of New India. Non-fossil fuels, solar energy capacity, stoppage on carbon emissions... India's performance on all such metrics is being discussed across the world," he said.