-The Hindustan Times   Had the world's leaders decided to ensure that global warming would increase to 3 to 4 degrees Celsius, perhaps to 5 degrees Celsius, instead of the 1.5-to-20 degrees Celsius threshold (over preindustrial temperatures) that scientists believe earth can tolerate, they couldn't have acted more purposively than they did at the Durban climate conference. If this sounds like a harsh judgement that radically differs from the official spin that...

-EPW   A paradigm shift on global strategy, but will it make a difference to climate change or only pass the buck? The United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Durban ended dramatically with a last minute agreement of sorts, which only talks about more talks to arrive at some kind of legally binding instrument that will impose emission curbs on all countries from 2020. The agreement is simply not enough in...

-IANS The food security bill, that seeks to legally entitle majority of India's population to cheaper foodgrains, is not sustainable as it would put further pressure on fiscal deficit and worsen inflation, an Asian Development Bank (ADB) official said on Tuesday. "While the purpose of ensuring food security to the poor is laudable, the food security bill is not the right mechanism for it," said Biswa Nath Bhattacharyay, lead professional, Asian Development...

Driven by its over-emphasis on evading a “legally binding” commitment, India signed on at Durban to a key agreement that has not even a pro forma reference to equity and sets aside differentiation explicitly. South Africa will undoubtedly be satisfied that the 17th meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP 17) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) marked the inauguration of the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action,...

I write to you in connection with the editorial “India lost the plot at Durban” in The Hindu of 13th December 2011. What prompted me to write to you was the inaccurate assessment of the deliberations in Conference of Parties at Durban and the lack of appreciation in the editorial of India's important contribution towards a possible future arrangement on Climate Change. At the outset, allow me to mention that to...