According to the US EIA, in 2001, India ranked 5th in the world in terms of carbon emissions at 251 million metric tons of carbon. India's carbon emissions are expected to triple by 2020, due to rapid industrialization, urbanization, higher standard of living, and shift from non-commercial to commercial fuels. Although India accounts for only 5 percent of global carbon emissions, its contribution to the incremental increase in global carbon emissions over the next twenty years will be significant. However, as a developing nation, India is not a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol, and is not bound to control its carbon emissions growth.

India's exclusion from Kyoto has therefore been a point of political controversy. However, with a third of the country's population living below the poverty line, the Indian government's priorities are economic growth and development. Therefore, it is likely that any successful greenhouse gas mitigation program in India must necessarily be consistent with the country's objectives of improvements in standard of living and per capita income. Fortunately, experience has shown that such "win-win" opportunities do exist; India's mega cities are among the most polluted in the world and there is considerable citizen pressure on the government to address the issue. E.g. in New Delhi, a citizen-suit resulted in a Supreme Court ruling mandating the conversion of all 84,000 public vehicles in the city to compressed natural gas, resulting in a considerably cleaner urban environment and a significant decrease in GHG emissions.

The proposed study will review existing estimates of carbon emissions from the energy sector. Existing and proposed interventions by international aid agencies, NGOs, academic institutions, industry initiatives, etc. will be catalogued and reviewed to estimate the avoided emissions from these activities. Finally, gaps in existing GHG mitigation strategies by various agencies, approaches to complement or strengthen existing activities, will be identified. The study will also analyze reasons for failed implementation and inability to scale-up pilot projects, to present a comprehensive view of GHG mitigation strategy in India.