New Delhi: The Economic Survey 2023-24, presented by Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament today, takes a critical view of the Western approach to tackling climate change and calls for developing countries to adopt a localized perspective. The survey emphasizes that a ‘one-size-fits-all’ strategy is inadequate and that developing nations should have the freedom to choose their own pathways to balance developmental goals with meaningful climate action.
The survey highlights that current global strategies are flawed and not universally applicable, arguing that adopting Western practices could be disastrous for India due to its unique cultural, economic, and societal norms intertwined with the environment. Despite India’s significant strides in climate action, the survey notes, the country often faces criticism for not aligning with Western solutions, which fail to appreciate India’s rich heritage of sustainable development ideas.
The document identifies several inconsistencies in the Western approach to climate change:
- The focus on overconsumption and merely substituting the means to achieve it without addressing the root problem.
- The global push for energy-intensive technologies like Artificial Intelligence and large-scale mining of rare earth minerals, which increases fossil fuel consumption.
- Developed countries’ lifestyles ignore the fundamental human relationship with nature, people, materiality, and self.
The Economic Survey underscores India’s ethos of a harmonious relationship with nature, contrasting with the culture of overconsumption in developed countries. It highlights traditional farming practices and multi-generational households as sustainable alternatives:
- Traditional farming integrates livestock rearing, repurposing farm waste as animal feed, reducing environmental costs, and balancing natural cycles. Shifting livestock to human-inedible feed could free up significant global arable land to combat hunger.
- Multi-generational households can create sustainable housing by sourcing local materials, designing well-ventilated spaces, and reducing resource and energy requirements.
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of Mission LiFE (Lifestyle For Environment) is presented as a solution, focusing on addressing people’s ‘wants’ without harming nature. The mission promotes individual responsibility in the fight against climate change, emphasizing mindful consumption, a circular economy, and sustainable living practices.
The survey quotes the International Energy Agency, stating that worldwide adoption of the LiFE initiative’s actions could reduce annual global carbon dioxide emissions by over 2 billion tonnes by 2030 and save about USD 440 billion in consumer costs. The Economic Survey concludes by upholding the tenets of Mission LiFE, advocating for a climate change movement that accommodates sovereign choices and economic needs while centering on individual behavior. “It’s time to rebuild societies with equanimity,” it asserts.