Search the Internet          Tips

India ratifies Kyoto Protocol

"India's accession to the Kyoto Protocol is a reiteration of our commitment to addressing and resolving various issues of global concern in a multilateral manner," Baalu said at the ongoing World Summit for Sustainable Development.

"I hope that other countries will also soon ratify the Kyoto Protocol so that it could come into force before Cop-8 [Conference of Parties to the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change], which starts in New Delhi on the 23rd of October," the minister said.

The Kyoto Protocol, which commits a country to the principle of multilateralism in addressing and resolving various issues of global concern, was adopted in 1997 and aims at reducing emissions of greenhouse gases.

Under the protocol, the industrialised countries will be required to reduce their emission of greenhouse gases by an average of 5.2 per cent during the first implementation period between 2008 and 2012.

Industrialised countries that contribute 55 per cent of the emissions are required to ratify the protocol before it is brought into force.

So far only those countries that are contributing about 36 per cent of the emissions have ratified the protocol.

The minister said United States and Russia must sign the protocol to make it effective. While the US has walked out of Kyoto Protocol, Russia was contributing 17 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions, he added.

ALSO READ
Special: A Summit for Mother Earth
India obtains guarantees on study of Asian Brown Haze
More needs to be done to fight poverty, hunger: Annan

Tell us what you think of this report