Down To Earth (01-15 November, 2025)

Operationalising India’s Carbon Market

• The GEI Target Rules are designed to operationalise the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS), 2023, which forms the backbone of India’s domestic carbon market.
• Industries achieving or exceeding targets will earn carbon credits.
• Non-compliant entities will need to purchase credits to offset their emission shortfalls.
• It ensures flexibility while driving overall emission intensity reductions across sectors.

Policy Integration and Governance

• The rules fall under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 (as amended in 2022), empowering the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) to monitor and enforce compliance.
• According to the MoEFCC, it aligns with India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) — specifically, to reduce the emissions intensity of GDP by 45% by 2030 compared to 2005 levels.

Sectoral Implications

• Cement & Aluminium: Both sectors are part of the Perform, Achieve, and Trade (PAT) program under BEE.
• These new rules build on the program’s experience in tracking and benchmarking industrial efficiency.
• Pulp & Paper, Chlor-Alkali: These sectors face challenges in energy efficiency and process optimization; emission caps will accelerate technological shifts toward low-carbon manufacturing.

Global Context

• The notification precedes COP30, hosted in Brazil, where India is expected to highlight it as part of its strengthened domestic climate policy, to ‘bridge the gap between voluntary pledges and enforceable emission accountability’.

Outlook

• Strengthen market-based climate governance.
• Stimulate investment in green technologies.
• Support India’s vision of achieving net-zero emissions by 2070.
• However, industry groups have called for clear monitoring guidelines and capacity-building to ensure smooth compliance.

Record Emissions & Renewable Surgesrecord Emissions & Renewable Surges

Context

• The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has confirmed that global atmospheric carbon dioxide recorded a new high, marking extreme weather events, rising global temperatures, and unstable ecosystems.

Global Energy Shift: Renewables Rise, Fossil Fuels Resist

• According to Ember’s ‘Global Electricity Mid-Year Insights 2025, the first half of 2025 witnessed renewable energy surpassing coal as the world’s leading source of electricity.
• Solar power has doubled in the past three years, driven largely by China, which contributed over half the global increase, and India, where government programs such as the National Solar Mission have rapidly expanded installed capacity to over 90 GW (MNRE, 2025).
• However, natural gas-based generation has risen by 1.6%, as countries turn to fossil fuels to meet soaring AI data center energy needs and to counter the effects of intensifying heatwaves.

China and India: Double-Edged Progress

• China is simultaneously leading solar deployment and constructing 95 GW of new coal capacity (CarbonBrief, 2025).
• India, while advancing in solar and green hydrogen initiatives, continues to expand coal capacity to ensure grid stability and energy security.

Alarming Rise in Global Deaths Among Young People

Context

• According to The Lancet’s Global Burden of Disease Study 2023, global life expectancy has rebounded to 76.3 years for women and 71.5 years for men, nearly returning to pre-pandemic levels.
• However, a worrying trend has emerged — rising deaths among young people aged 10–29 years, particularly women. 

Rising Mortality Among Young Women

• The study reports that death rates for young women (15–29 years) are 61% higher than earlier estimates. Key causes include:
• Pregnancy and childbirth complications;
• Road accidents, particularly in developing nations;
• Lack of access to reproductive healthcare, as noted by UNFPA and MoHFW.
• India’s National Health Mission (NHM) data also show that maternal mortality among adolescents remains high due to early marriages and limited prenatal care access.

Shift to Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)

• Globally, NCDs account for nearly two-thirds of all deaths, surpassing infectious diseases, highlighted an alarming rise in heart disease, diabetes, and stroke among youth due to:
• Sedentary lifestyles
• Ultra-processed food consumption
• Tobacco and alcohol use
• In India, NITI Aayog’s Health Index shows a 30% rise in NCD-related deaths in the 15–35 age group since 2015.

Mental Health

• Mental health disorders surged sharply, anxiety disorders increased by 63%, and depressive disorders by 26%.
• It links to social media addiction, unemployment, and post-pandemic isolation.
• India’s National Mental Health Survey (2023) also reported a sharp rise in depressive symptoms among college students and firsttime job seekers.

Environmental and Climate Risks Intensify

• The Lancet report underlined the growing impact of climate-related health risks:
• Deaths due to heat and cold exposure rose 6% annually between 2013–2023.
• India Meteorological Department (IMD) and MoEFCC reports indicate that extreme heat days have tripled since 1980, leading to more cases of dehydration, cardiac arrest, and mental fatigue among youth.

Way Forward

• Youth-focused health policies integrating mental health, reproductive care, and road safety.
• Climate-resilient healthcare systems to mitigate environmental risks.
• Education and employment reforms to address stress and mental health concerns.

IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025

Context

• Recently, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) convened its World Conservation Congress (held once every four years) in Abu Dhabi, marking a pivotal moment for global environmental assessment and action.

Ecosystem in Crisis

• The Global Land Outlook Thematic Report on Ecological Connectivity and Land Restoration, launched jointly by the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS), revealed that nearly one-third of the Earth’s land surface has been profoundly transformed by human use.
• Land degradation affects up to 40% of the planet, placing nearly half of humanity at risk.
• Deforestation, infrastructure expansion, and agriculture-driven fragmentation are rapidly diminishing ecological connectivity — essential for biodiversity and ecosystem resilience.

Loss of Natural Habitats

• More than 60% of the world’s rivers have been dammed or diverted, while road networks are expected to expand by 60% by 2050, intensifying habitat fragmentation.
• These pressures are eroding the capacity of ecosystems to regenerate.
• MoEFCC notes that habitat fragmentation and urban encroachment are key threats to over 680 native species listed under the Wildlife Protection Act (1972).

Species on the Edge: IUCN Red List Update

• 1,256 of 11,185 bird species (11.5%) are globally threatened. Of 1,360 reassessed bird species, 61% now show declining trends, a sharp rise from 44% in 2016.
• Six species have been officially moved to the Extinct category, including the Christmas Island shrew (Crocidura trichura) and slender-billed curlew (Numenius tenuirostris).

Warming Intensifies Arctic Threats

• The hooded seal (Cystophora cristata) has been uplisted to Endangered.
• The bearded and harp seals are now considered Near Threatened, primarily due to melting ice and declining prey populations.
• Climate-linked habitat loss has made these species sentinels of the planet’s warming trajectory.

India’s Red List Updates: Signs of Distress

• Four Indian bird species — key indicators of grassland health — have been uplisted:
• Indian Courser (Cursorius coromandelicus) – Least Concern → Near Threatened;
• Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis);
• Rufous-tailed Lark (Ammomanes phoenicura);
• Long-billed Grasshopper-Warbler (Locustella major);
• According to MoEFCC’s India Biodiversity Status Report (2024), Grassland ecosystems, once widespread across India, are among the most neglected biomes.

Protected Areas Under Pressure

• The IUCN Outlook Report (2025) shows worrying trends in India’s conservation zones:
• Sundarbans National Park: Downgraded from Good with Some Concerns (2020) to Significant Concern (2025).
• Manas National Park and Western Ghats: Continue under Significant Concern.
• Kaziranga, Nanda Devi, and Keoladeo National Parks: Classified as Good with Some Concerns.
• Deforestation, tourism, and climate stress are key drivers of this deterioration.

Equal Risks Beneath the Waves

• The dugong populations in the Gulf of Kutch and Andaman and Nicobar Islands are nearing functional extinction, warns a 2025 Wildlife Institute of India (WII) report.
• In the Gulf of Mannar–Palk Bay, sightings have dropped by over 70% in a decade, largely due to trawling and seagrass bed destruction.

Green Shoots: Tiger Conservation as a Model

• The IUCN’s first Green Status Assessment for Tigers (Panthera tigris) highlights conservation-driven hope.
• Despite being critically depleted across its native range, proactive recovery in India, Bhutan, and Nepal shows that targeted conservation can restore populations.
• The Green Status complements the Red List by tracking species recovery and conservation success, providing a roadmap for future rewilding initiatives.

Policy and Global Action

• India reaffirmed its commitment to the Global Biodiversity Framework 2030 and 30x30 conservation targets — protecting 30% of terrestrial and marine ecosystems by 2030.
• The National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Well-being, spearheaded by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser, aims to integrate biodiversity into climate adaptation and sustainable livelihoods.
• At the global level, the Congress endorsed a UN-backed Restoration Acceleration Platform, designed to support countries in scaling up land and species recovery efforts.

Soil Security: Existential Challenge of Humanity

Context

• At the recent IUCN World Conservation Congress, a historic step was taken toward protecting the soil by the adoption of ‘Motion 007: Soil Security Law’ marked the first formal move to give soil security global legal recognition.

Defining Soil Security: Five Dimensions

• Motion 007 defines soil security as, ‘Responsible management and preservation of soil to ensure its continued ability to perform vital functions, provide essential ecosystem and biophysical services, and protect against emerging threats to support life on Earth’.
• It outlines five guiding dimensions:
• Capacity: The soil’s ability to sustain life and provide ecosystem services.
• Condition: The physical, chemical, and biological state of soil.
• Capital: The economic and social value soil contributes to human welfare.
• Connectivity: The interlinkages between soil, water, biodiversity, and climate systems.
• These principles aim to guide nations in integrating soil health into environmental frameworks, shaping a potential Global Soil Convention.

Why Soil Matters More Than Ever

• Soil is increasingly recognized as the eighth existential issue—alongside climate change, food and water security, biodiversity loss, energy transition, environmental maintenance, and human well-being.
• According to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), if nations fail to act decisively, 16 million square kilometers of land could be severely degraded by 2050, with annual global economic losses exceeding US $878 billion.
• Land degradation is already undermining the planet’s capacity to sustain humanity.
• Over 33% of Earth’s soils are degraded, affecting food production for billions.
• India alone loses 5.3 billion tonnes of soil annually due to erosion and poor land management, according to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR, 2024).

Missing Link in Global Conventions

• While the world has established international conventions for climate (UNFCCC), biodiversity (CBD), and desertification (UNCCD), soil has remained largely invisible in global governance.
• Healthy soil contributes directly to 12 of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) — from climate action (SDG 13) to ending hunger (SDG 2).
• The FAO’s Global Soil Partnership and India’s Soil Health Card Scheme focus on soil conservation is essential for sustainable food and water systems.

Building on Existing Frameworks

• Many countries, including India, already align soil conservation programmes with climate and desertification frameworks.
• The National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) and the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) emphasize soil and water health integration.
• India’s National Bureau of Soil Survey & Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP) is working on soil carbon mapping to align with UNCCD Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) goals.
• Motion 007 builds on these foundations, urging countries to re-orient policies to prioritize soil security at their core.