India's Foreign Policy On Environmental Issues: Challenges And Wayforward

ABSTRACT

Not so long ago, many believed that the pursuit of clean air, clean water, and healthy forests was a worthy goal, but not part of our national security. Today environmental issues are part of the mainstream of Indian foreign policy. Environmental policy is aimed at balancing environmental protection and the conservation of natural resources with other policy goals, such as affordable energy as well as economic growth and employment. In the Directive Principles of State Policy, Article 48 says "the state shall endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country"; Article 51-A states that "it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures." At the international level, environmental protection is embedded in wider policy concerns and is being woven into broader foreign policy strategy of climate policy, while domestically; it is being shaped to serve national and sub-national development interests. India is emerging as a key player in climate negotiations, while at the national and sub-national levels; the environmental protection policy scene is becoming more active and more determined. It is essential to unravel this complex landscape if we are to understand why policy looks the way it does, and the extent to which India might contribute to a future international framework for tackling environmental degradation as well as how international parties might cooperate with and support India's domestic efforts.