Remarks by a prominent economist about India’s air quality have raised a debate on whether New Delhi should prioritise tackling pollution over tariff talks, as the country continues to transition towards a green economy.
Former International Monetary Fund chief economist Gita Gopinath made the comments at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, arguing that investors considering India would have to factor its environment because it “is going to be consequential for health”.
India has been moving to lessen its dependence on fossil fuels and ramping up renewable energy development. Last June, it achieved the goal of using non-fossil fuel sources for half of its total electric power installed capacity, five years ahead of the 2030 target set under the Paris Agreement.
Such a milestone, however, should complement efforts to improve India’s air quality, particularly in its cities, to lure foreign investors, according to analysts.
“Addressing that on a war footing is critical. This has to be a top mission for India,” Gopinath, who served as the IMF’s chief economist between 2019 and 2022, said last week.
Quoting a World Bank study, the American Indian economist said that about 1.7 million lives were lost in 2019 in India, or almost 20 per cent of overall deaths, because of pollution. “Even from an international investor’s perspective … the pollution holds you back.”
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