CO2 total emissions by selected regions

India is one of the countries most severely affected by climate change: it ranked seventh in the Germanwatch 2021 Global Climate Risk Index, and IQAir places the world’s most polluted cities in India. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), fossil fuels (especially coal) accounted for three quarters of the country’s energy needs in 2022. In 2023, India overtook the EU as the third main emitter of CO2 – though its per capita emissions are much lower than those of other major economies (see Figures 2 and 3). At the same time, the EU (with its Green Deal) and India are world leaders on climate action, which is one of the pillars of their bilateral relations.