India committed to reducing emissions intensity: PM

New Delhi: The global environmental agenda and the global development agenda were interlinked, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Thursday while stressing that resource efficiency was a necessary condition for sustainable development. A global growth model, which is inclusive and sustainable, would assist developing countries pursue their objectives, Manmohan Singh said at the inauguration of the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) here. "Resource-efficiency is a necessary condition for sustainable development, and a key element of the economic pillar of sustainability. The global environmental agenda and the global development agenda are now inter-linked," he said. "India is committed to meeting its domestic mitigation goal of reducing the emissions intensity of GDP by 20-25 percent by 2020." "What is required are regulatory regimes that are transparent, accountable and subject to oversight and monitoring. I would like to mention that protection of the environment and promoting development need not amount to a zero sum game," he said. "We in India are fully conscious of the need to conserve our resources through their utilization in a sustainable manner," he added. "We need to re-engineer our economies in ways that are both frugal and innovative in their use of resources," the prime minister said. The 13th edition of the DSDS focuses on the theme The Global Challenge of Resource-Efficient Growth and Development. It provides an efficient platform for thought leaders and policymakers to discuss effective policy mechanisms to reduce energy and resource footprint, a statement from the organisers The Energy Research Institute (TERI) said. The summit has been held annually in New Delhi since 2001. The three summit, which ends Feb 2, will see participation of three heads of state - Guyana President Donald Ramotar, Seychelles President James Alix Michel, Republic of Kiribati President Anote Tong - as well as dignitaries, Nobel laureates and ministers from several countries. IANS