BENGALURU, India (AP) – Nine months after India announced its target of “net zero” emissions by 2070 at the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow, the country’s federal cabinet finally approved a new climate plan on Wednesday.
The new goals will be submitted to the U.N.’s climate agency as part of an international agreement where nations publish how they intend to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, known as nationally determined contributions. The U.S. hopes to achieve “net zero” by 2050, and China by 2060.
The approval comes as India is preparing to celebrate 75 years of independence on Aug. 15 and with just three months left before the next climate conference.
When India’s plans were originally announced in November last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also said that India would increase its current capacity for non-fossil fuel electricity, with energy from clean sources able meet half of the country’s needs. India’s greener power generation has already passed 41%.
The emissions goals that India’s federal cabinet ultimately approved are largely in line with Modi’s announcement.