Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday again admonished the West for living the high life and not paying for it.
In a brief 600-word statement he told the Plenary of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) that “current consumption levels in the industrialised world are unsustainable.”
U.S. President Barack Obama and the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, did not attend.
He also rapped the West for not paying its dues. “Many countries could do more if additional finance and technology were available. Unfortunately, there is little evidence of support from the industrialised countries in these areas. The ongoing economic crisis has made matters worse.”
The reference was clear – the West did not pay when it had the money, so now that it doesn’t how will it do so?
His speech in many was a reiteration of the long established Indian stand, namely, that development, social inclusion and environmental sustainability are all equally critical. “The task before us is to give practical shape and content to this architecture in a manner that allows each country to develop according to its own national priorities and circumstances.”
At the global level, he said the problem would have to be guided by equitable burden sharing.
That is what the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities means, he said. “I am happy we have reaffirmed this principle as well as the principle of equity during this Summit,” Dr. Singh said.
India was doing its bit, he told the gathering. Between 1994 and 2007, India’s emissions-to-GDP intensity, excluding agriculture, declined nearly 25 per cent. “Looking ahead, we have set a target to further reduce the emissions intensity of GDP by 20-25% between 2005 and 2020,” he said.
Local pollution control measures impose costs on the economic actors, who are mostly small. They would have to be helped by targeted action via policy, he urged.
Keywords: Rio+20 summit
Does your own government believe that "the long established Indian stand, namely, that development, social inclusion and environmental sustainability are all equally critical", Dr.Singh? If it does believe, its actions have been against its own beliefs. No explanation of what is pointed out in this comment is required since all Indians other partisan supporters of your government know this truth.
Energy Consemption should be sustainable. We cannot live in central air accommodations, when our governments are in deep financial crisis. Tax the richest. Fuel consuming vehicles should be taxed severely. Excessive energy consumption should be taxed differently than low consumption. All of this financial burdens are man made and careless union activities and poor governing. BPL are people with income less than 28 rupees. In Kerala, we can't get an house maid even if we pay 6000 a month. Employment schemes allow people to work for Rs 200 a day and yet they all are BPL. How is that?
Although the West's consumption patterns are ridiculously unsustainable, even India's particularly the middle class consumption patterns are blindly aping the Western model. India has slowly become a consumerist society which is very different from the 'let's save for our kids' attitude that people had before.
Right Dr M. Now why don't you speak to our dear billionaires and have policies consistent with what you preach to the West?
Very Surprising because MMSji himself is the one who is pushing for 'FDI in retail' for India . And "FDI in retail" promotes nothing but "high life and consumption levels that are unsustainable." Again very surprising he talks about "development, social inclusion and environmental sustainability being all equally critical" while the Congress and UPA policys forpast 8 years focus only on GDP growth for statistics sake . PMji please walk your talk when it comes to India also .
Development,inclusive social growth and environmental sustainability are India's mantra for a welfare state and world.Burden sharing including yag and thyag of excess consumption of natural resources is emphasized.Carbon emission is brought below allowable level except agriculture.Sermonisation is easy but it's implementation at home turf itself is quite disappointing.For political expediency these statements focus India's philosophical superiority.A recent statement from a foreign tourist widely circulated speaks volumes-pollution, garbages every where,poverty and hunger,widening disparity between haves and have not,corruption affecting the poorest of the poor and above all neglect of pregnant mother and mounting numbers of slums in cities.China despite it's population has captured markets in Europe and North America.Foreign investments are pouring to China from all over including India.India has be above board first.It should demonstrate that it is just and does what it speaks.
. India’s role as co-chair of the Working Group on the "Framework for Strong, Sustainable and Balanced Growth" had really compelled the Prime Minister to announce for the contribution. It is encouraging that German Chancellor Angela Merkel who gracefully acknowledged Europe's lingering debt crisis that dominated the summit of G-20 had given an emphasis on keeping a tight rein on government finances and introduction of structural reforms. Even prior to leaving for the summit she had called for resisting temptations to finance growth again through new debts.
Still India has to prove its mettle and had rightly announced its contribution of $10 billion to IMF towards the corpus of additional $430 billion financial firewall to assist eurozone for preventing the world economy entangled in the irresolute situation and get plunged into total financial contagion. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could show the ground-breaking stand and advocate for increased contributions to the bailout fund of IMF. He had helpfully pointed fingers for the need to follow the 'effective adjustment' meaning austerity measures and ensure return to debt sustainability. As austerity should not be seen in the negative sense as 'slow growth' and had advised that Financial markets normally favour austerity, but even they are beginning to recognise that austerity with no growth will not produce a return to a sustainable debt position.
Despite registering economic crisis wherein internal limitations had reduced output, Prime Minister had accepted that India had allowed the fiscal deficit to expand to impart stimulus so as to revive investor response. Certainly India has to push forth for controlling subsidies. Unfortunately Indian economy is entangled into in a fiasco due to price rice and inflation. The government is knotted into scams after scams and had to take admonishing verdicts from various courts. The regime has no constructive plan to contain corruption which is the main impediment for governance as expected by the people.
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