‘Indian farmers need support to face the vagaries of climate change’

Though India’s National Action Plans on climate change are effective blueprints to deal with the vagaries of weather, it is time for the private sector in India to find new ways of doing business, said a top executive from Ingersoll Rand.

Global warming has taken centre stage, and it is estimated that $22.1 trillion to $41.6 trillion will be required between 2020 and 2050 to limit greenhouse gas emissions and to hold average global warming under two degrees Celsius.

First victim

“Global warming is slowly but gradually making inroads across business verticals, with the first victim being the agri commodities sector,” says Randal Newton, Vice-President (Enterprise Engineering), Ingersoll Rand, a diversified industrial company.

“Specifically to India, climate change could adversely affect farmer incomes by 20-25 per cent in the medium term, as also noted by the Economic Survey of India. This is amplified further by the current problems of water shortage and food spoilage,” he told BusinessLine .

Need of the hour

The need of the hour, according to Newton, “to counter farming uncertainties is to marry effective crop insurance, latest farming techniques, better logistic support, cold storages and transportation, to support farmers in facing the vagaries of climate change.”

Newton was in the country to attend the World Sustainable Development Summit session, TERI’s flagship event and a platform to accelerate action towards sustainable development and climate change. Noting that the phenomenon of climate change is not limited to the Indian sub-continent alone, he says the pattern is already visible in other Asian and African countries. The average global temperature is thought to have increased by 1 degree Celsius since the Industrial Revolution.

Pressure on corporates

The global nations agreed on the 2-degree Celsius limit in Paris in 2015, and undertook voluntary greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.

Depleting natural energy resources and the constant global warming challenge has been placing pressure on corporates to launch products that meet international standards.

Ingersoll Rand is slated to invest $500 million in research and development over the next five years to fund the long-term reduction of GHG emissions.

The company made a commitment to significantly reduce GHG emissions from its products and operations by 2030. Its climate commitment pledges to cut the refrigerant GHG footprint of its products by 50 per cent by 2020 and incorporate lower global warming potential alternatives across its product portfolio by 2030.

After effects

Speaking about global warming and its after effects on the Indian economy, Newton says recent “policy measures by the Indian government clearly indicate that future growth will be cleaner and greener. The Indian government has taken concrete steps in encouraging renewable power, better efficiency for power grid lines and restriction on CO2 emitting coal plants.”

Terming India’s National Action Plan on climate change “an effective tool, geared towards addressing the needs of the Indian economy,” Newton maintains “it provides a framework, which encapsulates preserving the environment and unlocking the true potential of businesses across agriculture, manufacturing and the services sectors.”

While the Indian economy “is one of the brightest beacons in the global economic landscape,” Newton says the country faces climatic challenges that continue to arrest economic growth.

“This also restricts the true potential of SME and MSME’s across business verticals,” he said.

Newton points out the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) have significant implications for “Indian businesses in terms of future market design and their implications on future investment strategies, R&D initiatives and capacity building requirements.”

‘Key model’

According to him, Public-Private-Partnerships (PPPs) are a key model to leverage the technological and execution strengths of the private sector.

Stating that the global “investment horizon for green growth is starting to open up and sustainability is gaining a lot of importance,” Newton said, “future markets are likely to see cost-competitive renewables supported by renewable policy initiatives. Though the private sector is expected to play a crucial role in the transition towards a low carbon future, it will have to innovate to find new ways of doing business in a regulatory environment that favours low-carbon growth.”

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