Why India is not in Baku, Azerbaijan currently for COP29

India is not attending the two-day World Leaders Climate Action Summit, which began Tuesday (November 12) in Baku, Azerbaijan, as it will not involve talks on climate change. However, India will be part of a second segment of the UN climate conference gathering, on November 19-20.

Media reports quoted Indian officials as saying New Delhi is keeping away from the summit because it would simply see speeches from select world leaders and not include discussions on the way ahead.

“Not all countries are supposed to make it. Another high-level segment is towards the end of the summit, and India is very much part of it,” said an IANS report quoting an official.

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Minister of state to attend

This will be the 29th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP29). The annual climate summit, from November 11 to 22, is set against the backdrop of urgent calls for action on climate change.

Indian minister of state for environment, forest and climate change Kirti Vardhan Singh will lead a 19-member Indian delegation and deliver the country's national statement in the second segment of the Baku meet.

This will be held on November 19 and 20, and it will be for parties whose heads of state and governments did not deliver a national statement in the first part.

Indian outlook at Baku

The Baku conference is focussed heavily on securing a new climate finance target for countries most vulnerable to climate impacts.

At Baku, India is expected to seek a New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG), a framework that aims at replacing the annual commitment of $100 billion by 2020 made by developed countries in 2009.

Watch | COP29 kicks off as climate funding crisis and record temperatures loom large

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and environment, forest and climate change minister Bhupender Yadav attended COP28 last year in Dubai. Modi delivered the national statement at the opening ceremony.

India and climate change

India has played a key role in shaping global climate finance frameworks to address the urgent funding needed for both mitigation and adaptation efforts.

More than 80 national leaders are lined up to speak on Tuesday and Wednesday.

India’s stance at COP29 is rooted in pushing developed nations to fulfil their climate finance pledges, increasing resilience for vulnerable communities and driving an equitable transition to clean energy sources, said government officials.

India, among the world’s major economies, is also not hosting a pavilion at COP29, a move that reflects its balancing act between meeting its development needs and advancing climate action.