COP26 summit: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Glasgow, interacts with Indian community as crowd sings 'Modi Hai Bharat Ka Gehna'

Image courtesy: ANI

Glasgow: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in Glasgow on Sunday for the COP26 climate summit, interacted with the Indian community after his arrival at the hotel amid the singing of 'Modi Hai Bharat Ka Gehna'. The Prime Minister especially talked with a kid present there to welcome him.

As PM Modi arrived at the hotel, the Indian community sang 'Modi Hai Bharat Ka Gehna' during interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his arrival at the hotel.

#WATCH | Glasgow, UK | Indian community sings 'Modi Hai Bharat Ka Gehna' during interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his arrival at the hotel. pic.twitter.com/Hq2y7bSWEd

— ANI (@ANI) October 31, 2021

The Prime Minister, who flew into Glasgow from the G20 Summit in Italy, will begin the UK leg of his European tour with a meeting with community leaders and Indologists based in Scotland on Monday morning. He will then proceed for the opening ceremony of the World Leaders' Summit (WLS) at the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at the Scottish Event Campus (SEC) in Glasgow, where he is set to address the summit plenary session, said a PTI report.

#WATCH | Glasgow, UK | Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives at the hotel; interacts with a kid present among the Indian community to welcome him. pic.twitter.com/t1mLl63Jhy

— ANI (@ANI) October 31, 2021

PM Modi's bilateral meeting with UP PM Boris Johnson is expected to take place soon after Monday's opening ceremony, which will include cultural performances and a speech by the UK Prime Minister. Johnson has said the summit will be the "world's moment of truth" and has urged world leaders to make the most of it.

"The question everyone is asking is whether we seize this moment or let it slip away," Johnson reportedly said ahead of the two-week conference. His talks with PM Modi are expected to focus on the UK-India climate partnership as well as a stock-take of the 2030 Roadmap for stronger 

UK-India Strategic Partnership was signed by the two leaders during a virtual summit in May this year, and both the governments remain committed to the implementation of the Roadmap, within prescribed timelines. 

The Modi-Johnson meeting will be followed by a leader-level COP26 event entitled Action and Solidarity: The Critical Decade, with Modi, set to deliver India's national statement on the country's climate action to the delegates soon after.

Ahead of the summit, PM Modi's statement said that "India is among the top countries in the world in terms of installed renewable energy, wind and solar energy capacity. At the WLS, I will share India's excellent track record on climate action and our achievements."

"I will also highlight the need to comprehensively address climate change issues including equitable distribution of carbon space, support for mitigation and adaptation and resilience building measures, mobilisation of finance, technology transfer and importance of sustainable lifestyles for green and inclusive growth," PM Modi's statement is quoted as saying.

India's focus at the COP26 Summit will be on the country's "ambitious" Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) goals for the post-2020 period under the Paris Agreement. These include a reduction in emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 per cent by 2030 from the 2005 level, as well as achieving 40 per cent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel based energy resources by 2030.

At the end of day one of the World Leaders' Summit on Monday, PM Modi will join more than 120 Heads of government and Heads of State at a special VVIP reception at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions.

The reception will also involve members of the royal family, including Prince Charles and wife Camilla and Prince William and wife Kate Middleton. Queen Elizabeth II was due to attend this special reception but pulled out last week after medical advice against travel.

On Tuesday, the final day of Modi's UK visit, the PM is scheduled to hold a series of bilateral meetings with leaders of Switzerland, Finland, Israel, Nepal, Malawi, Ukraine, Japan and Argentina, as well as a meeting with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

The launch of the Infrastructure for Resilient Island States initiative and a leader-level event entitled Accelerating Clean Technology Innovation and Deployment are also scheduled for Tuesday before the Prime Minister flies back to New Delhi in the evening.

The India-led International Solar Alliance (ISA) will launch a new Green Grids Initiative in partnership with the UK, with an ambition to connect different parts of the world with a common solar grid. 

Notably, the COP26 climate summit comes six years after the Paris Agreement was signed by over 190 countries to limit rising global temperatures to well below 2C with a view of reaching 1.5C. 

According to the UN, global temperatures are currently set to rise to 2.7C, and scientists are clear that emissions must halve by 2030 to keep the aims made in Paris within reach.

(With Agency Inputs)