G20 meet | India at forefront in taking action on biodiversity conservation: PM Modi

India has consistently been at the forefront in taking action on biodiversity conservation, protection, restoration and enrichment, and has set the bar even higher through the updated targets, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday.

Addressing the G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Ministerial Meeting in Chennai via video conferencing, the prime minister said he was proud to say that India has led the way through its ambitious “Nationally Determined Contributions”.

‘Net Zero’ target

“India achieved its installed electric capacity from non-fossil fuel sources, nine years ahead of the target of 2030. And, we have set the bar even higher through our updated targets. Today, India is one of the top five countries in the world, in terms of installed renewable energy capacity,” he said.

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“We have also set a target of attaining “Net Zero” by 2070. We continue to collaborate with our partners through alliances including International Solar Alliance, CDRI, and the “Leadership Group for Industry Transition,” the prime minister said. India is a mega-diverse country and the nation has consistently been at the forefront in taking action on biodiversity conservation, protection, restoration and enrichment. “Through the Gandhinagar Implementation Roadmap and Platform, you are recognising restoration in priority landscapes impacted by forest fires and mining,” he said.

India has recently launched the “International Big Cat Alliance” for conservation of seven big cats of our planet based on our learnings from Project Tiger, a pioneering conservation initiative. As a result of Project Tiger, 70 per cent of the world’s tigers today are found in India, Modi said. India is also working on Project Lion and Project Dolphin, he added.

People’s participation

India’s initiatives are powered by people’s participation, he said and pointed to the “Mission Amrit Sarovar”, a unique water conservation initiative. Under this mission, more than 63,000 water bodies have been developed in just about one year. This mission is implemented entirely through community participation, and aided by technology.

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Our “Catch the Rain” campaign has also shown excellent results. To conserve water, more than 2.8 lakh water harvesting structures have been constructed through this campaign,” he added. In addition, nearly 2.5 lakh re-use and recharge structures have also been constructed. All this was achieved through people’s participation and focused on local soil and water conditions, he said.

Also, community participation was effectively used in the “Namami Gange Mission” for cleaning the river Ganga. This has led to a major achievement in the reappearance of the Gangetic Dolphin in many stretches of the river. “Our efforts in wetland conservation have also borne fruit,” the prime minister added.

(With agency inputs)