Context:

• Elephant corridors report plagued with inconsistencies, could escalate conflict with humans, says expert

Inconsistencies Highlighted in the Definition of  Corridors in the Elephant Corridors Report

• Definition of Corridor: The Elephant Corridors report has classified landscapes and habitats as corridors.
  • Landscapes, being an overarching geographical entity, are partly fragmented due to agricultural contingencies. The corridors then serve as crucial links between habitats spread across these landscapes. 
  • The original meaning of the corridors has been lost and there is a tendency to call every place where elephants move as a corridor. 
• Contraction Of Area Fit For Large Elephants: The areas in West Bengal close to Odisha and Jharkhand, like Mayurjhirna, have only small patches of forest cover that are fit for elephants. 
  • The rest of the areas where elephants move in south Bengal are human-dominated agricultural fields. 
  • The elephants go to Bankura, East Midnapur, West Midnapur, and even Bangladesh. 
  • The document suggests linking these areas to other elephant landscapes, which has never been the intent of the word corridor.
• Expansive Corridors:  This would significantly escalate human-elephant conflict. Annual human deaths have already increased from 25 to about 500-600.
  • The expansion of range is also causing elephant deaths due to electrocution, falling in wells, and entering human-dominated agricultural landscapes.

News Source: DTE

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Context:

• India recently criticized the European Union’s (EU) plan to impose a Carbon Tax on imports, calling it a poorly thought-out decision.

India’s Response to EU’s Carbon Tax (CBAM)

• India believes this CBAM  tax would severely harm the EU’s manufacturing industry and even if the plan goes ahead in 2026, India would counteract it by imposing its own carbon tax.

What is the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)?

• CBAM is the EU’s tool to fight carbon leakage and is one of the central pillars of the EU’s ambitious Fit for 55 Agenda. 
• It will equalize the price of carbon between domestic products and imports. 
• This will ensure that the EU’s climate policies are not undermined by production relocating to countries with less ambitious green standards or by the replacement of EU products with more carbon-intensive imports. 
• CBAM is a WTO-compatible measure that encourages global industry to embrace greener and more sustainable technologies.
• In its transitional phase, CBAM will only apply to imports of cement, iron and steel, aluminum, fertilizers, electricity, and hydrogen. 
• EU importers of those goods will have to report on the volume of their imports and the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions embedded during their production, but without paying any financial adjustment at this stage. 

News Source: The Hindu

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Context:

• The 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is bringing a renewed focus on the objective of the Paris Agreement.

What is the Paris Agreement?

• It superseded the Kyoto Protocol as the principal regulatory instrument governing the global response to climate change.
• It aims to cap the average global temperature increase at 2 degrees Celsius, or preferably 1.5°C above the preindustrial era.
• This objective was supported by a report that concluded that even a global warming of 1.5°C above the preindustrial average over an extended, decades-long period would pose high risks for “some regions and vulnerable ecosystems.
• 1.5°C and 2°C are not specific thresholds beyond which physical impacts suddenly manifest in a given year or location.
• These goals reflect the fact that a warming world will experience more severe impacts, with significantly graver consequences under 2°C warming compared to 1.5°C.
• It is an outcome of the Conference of Parties 21 or COP 21.
• Since 2020, countries have been submitting their national climate action plans, known as Nationally determined contributions (NDCs) as part of the agreement.
• • In their NDCs, countries communicate actions they will take to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in order to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement. 

Current Global Warming Scenario

• Currently, the global average temperature has risen to 1.1°C relative to the 1800s and is projected to surpass the 1.5°C mark within the next decade. 
• If business as usual continues, scientists express concern that the world could warm by 4.4°C by 2100.

Why is the 1.5°C goal far from perfect?

• Different regions warm at their own rates. For instance, the Arctic is warming at double, or even triple, the average global rate. The North Pole is also warming faster than the Antarctic.
• This divergence implies that various regions will reach a 1.5°C increase at different times.
• Using global temperature is simply a convenient metric to represent all of these changes in a single measure of the amount of climate change.
• Uncertainties persist regarding the exact month or year when the 1.5°C goal will be surpassed. 
• This is attributed to uncertainties in past global temperature records, which stand at about 0.1°C, and natural climate variability, such as the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO).
  • ENSO is a recurring climate pattern involving changes in the temperature of waters in the central and eastern tropical Pacific Ocean.
• To determine when warming will cross the 1.5°C mark, scientists will need to average the global temperature over multiple years.

How far is the world on track to achieve the 1.5°C goal?

• It’s extremely unlikely that warming will be limited to 1.5°C given the large gap between projected emissions of carbon dioxide and other anthropogenic greenhouse gases and the promised reductions in such gases by different countries.
• The United Nations also stated that the world is not on track to meet the Paris Agreement target of preventing global temperature from exceeding 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

Why is the world missing the target?

• Historically, developed countries are responsible for a major chunk of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. 
• Therefore, they are expected to assume more responsibility and implement climate action. 
• However, the Climate Performance Index over the years has shown otherwise. Countries like Australia, the U.S, Japan, Russia and Canada have made little progress in meeting their pledges.

News Source: DTE

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Context:

• The Indian Finance Minister is on a three-day visit to Sri Lanka, which is struggling to come out of the financial crisis that hit the island nation last year. 

India Sri Lanka Ties

• The ‘NAAM 200’ was organized by the Government of Sri Lanka to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the arrival of Indian Origin Tamils (IOTs).
• During the event, India assured Sri Lanka that it will continue to work closely with it on debt restructuring discussions and will extend support for the economic recovery.
• The Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) for Solar Electrification of Religious Places in Sri Lanka was exchanged between both countries.
• Under the MoU, India will allocate Rs 82.40 crore out of the Government of India’s total grant of Rs 107.47 crore earmarked for the promotion of Buddhist ties.
• India Sri Lanka negotiated on the proposed Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement.
• The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) payment system will soon be launched in Sri Lanka.

India’s Assistance To Sri Lanka 

• In line with India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy, India extended assistance of about USD 4 billion to it last year through multiple credit lines and currency support.
• India was the first bilateral creditor to convey financing assurance to the International Monetary Fund that paved the way for others to provide similar assurances that formalized the IMF programme for Sri Lanka.
• India released a vision document for economic partnership outlining specific areas of cooperation for a sustainable economic development and prosperity.
• India is part of an official creditor’s committee, with Japan and other Paris Club members, and is currently negotiating a debt treatment plan with Sri Lanka.
• During the visit of President Ranil Wickremesinghe to India, India announced a special grant package of SLR 3 billion (INR 75 crore) for multi-faceted projects for the IOT community.
  • Under this India committed to undertake projects focusing on education and skill development, livelihood assistance, infrastructure development, and food security.

News Source: Economic Times

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Context:

• This article is based on the news “India’s emerging challenge in Bhutan” Which was published in the Business Standard. Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck will begin an eight-day visit to India, a trip that comes amid a renewed push by Bhutan and China for an early settlement of their boundary dispute.

Bhutan King Wangchuck to Begin 8-day India Visit

• The visit would provide an opportunity for both sides to review the bilateral cooperation and to advance the bilateral partnership across diverse sectors.
• The trip comes weeks after China and Bhutan held the 25th round of boundary talks in Beijing and signed an agreement on delimitation and demarcation of the Bhutan-China boundary.

India Bhutan Relations – Background

• India and Bhutan share unique bilateral relations based on mutual trust, goodwill, and understanding. 
• Basic Framework: The Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation signed in 1949 between the two countries, which was renewed in 2007 serves as the basic framework.
• Spiritual Kinship: Bhutan considers India as “gyagar,” the sacred land where Buddhism originated. Buddhism has kept the ties between the two countries resilient. 
  • The recent International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) brought together Buddhist leaders from both nations, emphasizing their shared spiritual connection and strengthening the spiritual bond.
  • IBC: Based in Delhi, India, IBC represents the rich diversity of Buddhism and provides a platform for the global Buddhist community to share its wisdom while at the same time preserving and promoting its shared heritage. Its headquarters is in New Delhi, India.

Also Read:  Warming Ties: On Bhutan China Relations and India’s Concerns

What are the key aspects and significance of India Bhutan relations?

• High-level Exchanges: The recent visit by Bhutan king amid Bhutan’s bilateral talks with China shows the strength of India Bhutan relations. Further, the Prime Minister of India visited Bhutan in August 2019 and launched major bilateral projects including: 
  • The 720 MW Mangdechhu Hydroproject. 
  • The Ground Earth Station of ISRO for utilization of the South Asian Satellite.
  • Extension of interconnection between the National Knowledge Network of India and Bhutan’s Research and Education Network. Trade and Economic Ties: India is Bhutan’s top trade partner and India-Bhutan Agreement on Trade, Commerce and Transit establishes a free trade regime between the two countries and also provides for duty free transit of Bhutanese exports to third countries. In 2021-22, India’s bilateral trade with Bhutan was USD 1422 million, of which India’s imports from Bhutan were USD 545 million.
• Hydropower Cooperation: Mutually beneficial hydro-power cooperation between India and Bhutan is covered under the 2006 bilateral agreement for cooperation and its Protocol signed in 2009. 
  • Four hydro-electric projects (HEPs) totaling 2136 MW are already operational in Bhutan and are supplying electricity to India. 
  • Two HEPs viz. 1200 MW Punatsangchhu-I, 1020 MW Punatsangchhu-II in Inter-Governmental mode are under various stages of implementation.
• Security and Geostrategic Aspect: Bhutan acts as a buffer between India and China. It has cooperated with India and helped to remove militant groups like United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) from the Himalayan nation.

• Multilateral Cooperation: Both India and Bhutan are members of various regional groupings, including SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) and BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation).
  • Members collaborate to foster economic and technical cooperation, and work towards collective growth and stability in the regions.
• New Areas of Cooperation: Bilateral cooperation has moved into new and emerging areas with full interoperability of the flagship digital project RuPay, Bhutan became the second country to launch the BHIM app, etc.
  • COVID-19 Assistance: Under the Vaccine Maitri Initiative, India gifted around 5.5 lakh doses of the Made-In-India Covishield vaccines to Bhutan.

India Bhutan Relations – Key Challenges

• Normalizing Bhutan and China Relations: In October 2023, Bhutan’s first foreign minister visited China and concluded the 25th round of border negotiations, aimed at ending the decades-old territorial dispute. 
  • Cooperation Agreement: Signed by both the countries, it outlines the responsibilities and functions of a joint technical team tasked with delimiting and demarcating the disputed boundaries. 
  • For China, diplomatic relations and dispute resolution with tiny-landlocked Bhutan is crucial for its status as an Asian power, and for improving its offensive position vis-a-vis India.
• Security Concerns: The China-Bhutan boundary talks are raising security concerns for India as they cover the trijunction near the crucial Siliguri Corridor that connects India’s North East with the rest of the country. 
  • Recent developments viz. Chinese construction of villages along the China- Bhutan border and change in the Bhutanese expression over the resolution of the trijunction near Doklam.
• Bhutan may Join the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI): India’s reservations about the BRI and its impact on the region, particularly in terms of sovereignty and debt implications, could cause friction given Bhutan’s strategic location.
  • By establishing diplomatic relations with China, Bhutan will be the last South Asian country to enter the competitive India-China dynamic.
• Economic Dependency on India and Diversification: Bhutan heavily relies on India for trade, aid, and assistance which has provided an additional incentive for Bhutan to expedite the negotiations with China. 
  • China’s exports to Bhutan have increased from Rs 200 crore in 2020 to Rs 1,500 crore in 2022. 
• The Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal (BBIN) Motor Vehicle Agreement: Bhutan withheld its ratification of the agreement, citing environmental concerns.
  • BBIN is a sub-regional initiative to improve economic cooperation and connectivity while bypassing complex political issues of SAARC.

Way Forward for the India Bhutan Relations

• India’s Diplomatic Balancing: Although there are increasing signs of normalisation of relations between the two countries, India needs to maintain a strategic silence, indicating it does not anticipate these developments to harm its interest.
  • With sensitive sectors like Doklam being unresolved and new claims in the Sakteng region, India needs to be cautious of China’s intention to alter the status quo.
• Exploit Chinese Crisis of Trust: Bhutan got a shock when China made sudden new claims over the Eastern sector of the Sakteng region. 
  • In 1984, China narrowed the disputed region to two sectors: in the north, the Pasamlung and Jakarlung valleys; and in the west, Dramana, Shakhatoe, Sinchulungpa and Langmar Po valley, Yak chu and Charithang valleys, and the Doklam plateau. 
  • This forced Bhutan to expedite the negotiations to further deter future claims over its territory whereas ties between India and Bhutan are based on mutual trust, goodwill and understanding, favoring India over China.
• Improving Security Cooperation: The Doklam standoff in 2017 emphasized the importance of security and border management coordination between India and Bhutan. 
  • For instance, India’s deployment of the Military Training Team (IMTRAT) in Bhutan has been crucial for training Bhutanese security forces. 
• Cultural and People-to-People Relations: A number of Bhutanese pilgrims travel to Bodh Gaya, Rajgir, Nalanda, Sikkim, Udayagiri, and other Buddhist sites in India. 
  • Strengthening cultural ties through exchange programs, festivals, and educational initiatives between the two countries can enhance people-to-people contact.
• Further Strengthening Economic Ties: India is the leading source of investments in Bhutan, comprising 50% of the country’s total Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and needs to explore new sectors and products to diversify trade beyond the existing free trade agreement.
  • India can invest in sectors like renewable energy, tourism, and technology while encouraging joint ventures and partnerships between Indian and Bhutanese companies.

Conclusion:

The evolving dynamics in India Bhutan relations, amidst Bhutan’s engagement with China, highlight the strategic significance of maintaining diplomatic balance, enhancing security cooperation, and further strengthening economic ties to ensure mutual prosperity and regional stability.

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Context:

• UNEP’s Adaptation Gap Report 2023: Underfinanced. Underprepared – Inadequate investment and planning on climate adaptation leaves the world exposed and finds that progress on climate adaptation is slowing on all fronts when it should be accelerating to catch up with rising climate change impacts.

Adaptation Gap Report 2023 – Key Findings of the Report

• Climate adaptation finance flows from public multilateral (like the World Bank) and bilateral sources (from a developed to a developing nation) declined by 15 percent to around $21 billion in 2021.
• This is despite pledges that were made at the 26th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Glasgow to double 2019 adaptation finance support to around $40 billion per year by 2025. 
• The adaptation finance gap is widening and now stands between US$194 billion and US$366 billion per year.
• Adaptation finance needs are 10–18 times as great as current international public adaptation finance flows – at least 50 percent higher than previously estimated. 
• Estimated adaptation costs and needs for developing countries are significantly higher than previous estimates, with a plausible central range of US$215 billion to US$387 billion per year this decade.
• Five out of six Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) have established at least one national adaptation plan, strategy, or policy, and just under half of them have two or more national instruments, that serve to replace or update the initial ones.
• A recent study indicates that the 55 most climate-vulnerable economies alone have experienced losses and damages of more than US$500 billion in the last two decades.
• The AGR 2023 has analyzed the integration of gender equality and social inclusion in cost NDCs and NAPs. It finds that only 20 percent of these plans have a dedicated budget for such activities and that the amount allocated is generally low, averaging 2 percent.

Also Read: Interconnected Disaster Risks Report 2023 – UNU-EHS

What is the significance of Bridge Adaptation Finance and Measures?

Accelerating Global Temperature:

• Global temperatures and climate impacts and risks continue to rise, highlighting the urgent need for rapid acceleration of global adaptation action.
• While global average temperatures already exceed 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels, current plans reflected in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) are putting us towards 2.4°C–2.6°C by the end of the century.  

Residual Climate Risk:

• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that residual climate risks (that is risks remaining after ambitious adaptation efforts) will persist even if the Paris Agreement goals are reached. Residual climate risks, in turn, will inevitably lead to both economic and non-economic losses and damages.

Lack of a National Adaptation Planning Instrument:

• One out of six countries still does not have a national adaptation planning instrument and more must be done to close the remaining gap

Progress in adaptation implementation in developing countries is plateauing:

• The number of adaptation actions supported through the four international climate funds2 was lower in 2022 than in the previous year. Still, their value has been rising due to investments in very large projects (figure ES.3).

Gender equality and social inclusion:

• There is global recognition that climate change can exacerbate inequality in multiple dimensions of social identity, including gender, indigeneity, age, ethnicity, migrant status or disability. 
• Of the international public finance for adaptation, only 2 percent is considered gender-responsive, with a further 24 percent considered gender-specific or integrative. 

Minimize Climate Costs

• Studies indicate that every billion invested in adaptation against coastal flooding leads to a USD 14 billion reduction in economic damages.
• USD 16 billion per year invested in agriculture would prevent approximately 78 million people from starving or chronic hunger because of climate impacts.

Reducing Loss and Damage: 

• Climate Vulnerable Economies Loss Report estimated that damages in the 55 most climate-vulnerable economies alone exceeded US$500 billion over the past two decades (figure ES.5).

Way Forward:  This Adaptation Gap Report 2023 identifies seven ways to bridge the adaptation financing gap (figure ES.5). 

The core continues to be dominated by:

• International Public Adaptation Finance: LDCs rely most heavily on international support, particularly grants – and bridging the adaptation finance gap requires attention to both quantitative and qualitative aspects such as access to finance and equity.
• Domestic Expenditure on Adaptation:  Increase and improve budget tagging and tracking. It can, therefore, help to spend government funds more consciously and to integrate climate risks more effectively.
• Private-sector Finance for Adaptation: Concessional finance can help encourage or de-risk private-sector investment and reduce the cost of capital, with the potential to also include technical assistance funds (grants) to help strengthen financial viability or provide support on key issues.

Four additional potential approaches to bridge the finance gap are identified:

• Remittances By Migrants: These are a potential supplementary source of finance for bridging the adaptation gap at the local level.
• Increasing Finance Tailored To Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises: SMEs hold considerable potential in unlocking climate adaptation solutions. Since SMEs constitute the bulk of the economy for many developing (and developed) countries, financing mechanisms should support their potential to offer adaptation-relevant products and services. 
• Reform Of The Global Financial Architecture: The adaptation finance gap has become evident that this system is no longer fit to address today’s global challenges.
  • This architecture, together with other financing institutions such as MDBs, holds a large and unused potential for helping developing countries to tackle 21st-century problems, including adaptation
• Implementing Article 2.1 (C) Of The Paris Agreement: Article 2.1(c) calls on governments to ‘make financial flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development’. This is a pre-condition for achieving the Agreement’s adaptation and mitigation goals, including limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels

Also Read: Sustainable Development Summit (SDG)-2023

Conclusion:

Policymakers, multilateral banks, investors, and the private sector must make COP28 (2023) the moment that the world committed fully to insulating low-income countries and disadvantaged groups, such as women and Indigenous Peoples, from climate impacts.

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