India has significantly increased its financial commitment to fighting climate change, with spending on climate action rising from 3.7 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) six years ago to nearly 5.6 per cent today. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman shared these figures while speaking at the “Degrees of Instability: Climate Security in a Warming World” town hall in Munich, Germany, on Saturday. She emphasised that India is not merely waiting for international aid but is proactively investing its own resources to meet environmental goals.
“India has increased its commitment to climate action. We were at around 3.7 per cent of our GDP six years ago, but today we are close to 5.6 per cent. So it has more than doubled in a matter of six years,” the Finance Minister stated.
She noted that while India continues to seek global technology and funding, it has moved forward using its own resources to achieve its nationally determined commitments. She also highlighted the challenges faced by other regions, observing that many African countries may struggle to reach such high levels of spending due to economic constraints.
Beyond spending, Sitharaman called for a balanced approach that focuses as much on resilience and adaptation as on emission control. She warned that failing to prioritise adaptation could put human lives and livestock at risk. The Finance Minister argued that the global community must adopt the “polluter pays” principle, ensuring that the cost of climate action is shared fairly based on a country’s historical contribution to emissions.
“As much attention as we give to emission control, we need to focus on resilience and adaptation. Second, technologies will have to work together. And third, there must be differentiated treatment when it comes to paying for it. It cannot be that countries that have contributed less to emissions are made to pay equally,” she said.
Detailing India’s domestic efforts, Sitharaman pointed out that the country is well ahead of its renewable energy targets, having achieved two-thirds of its commitments four years earlier than planned. She also mentioned that the Union Budget 2026–27 provides specific funding and incentives for carbon capture strategies. These technologies are being promoted across the mainland and in remote areas to help businesses reduce their carbon footprint while supporting India’s transition to a greener economy.
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