India opposes environmental index ranking

India has objected to a report, called the Environmental Performance Index, 2022, that places India last in a list of 180 countries on managing climate change, environmental health, and ecosystem vitality. “High-scoring countries exhibit longstanding and continuing investments in policies that protect environmental health, preserve biodiversity and habitat, conserve natural resources, and decouple greenhouse gas emissions from economic growth.” India ranked at the bottom of all countries in the 2022 EPI, with low scores across a range of critical issues with “deteriorating air quality and rapidly rising greenhouse gas emissions” posing major challenges, according to the report. India being a developing country and the second largest population will have the increasing trend of GHG and so the correct method, the Environment Ministry said, would be to calculate GHG emissions per capita and have a model with the coefficients taking into account the effect of policies to reduce emissions like increase in use of renewable energy, electric vehicles, creation of carbon sink, etc., to project the values for future years. India was a party to Paris Agreement and has given a goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2070 and hence comparing it to countries with Projected 2050 emissions level in 2050 equal to or below zero receiving the maximum score is against the principle of Equity as enshrined in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change agreements.