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A majority of Indians think the government should ramp up efforts on climate action, according to a new report from the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and CVoter International, an Indian international polling agency headquartered in Delhi.
Most people want India to take steps to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions immediately without waiting for other countries, the report titled Global Warming’s Four Indias, 2022 stated.
“The message from the report to the Indian public is clear: Indians of all kinds are concerned about climate change, support climate policies, and want leadership from their governments,” Anjal Prakash, associate professor (research) and research director at the Bharti Institute of Public Policy at ISB, said in a statement.
The Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and CVoter conducted a nationally representative survey of 4,619 Indian adults aged 18 years and above.
The report gauged how Indians respond to the issue of climate change and identified four unique groups: the alarmed, the concerned, the cautious, and the disengaged.
The survey showed that 54 per cent of Indians are alarmed, 29 per cent are concerned, 11 per cent are cautious and 7 per cent are disengaged.
The alarmed group are most aware and convinced of global warming, while those concerned are convinced of the harsh reality but know little less about it and view it as a less immediate threat than the former.
Both groups support political and national action to address global warming.
While those cautious agree that global warming is happening, they are less sure of the causes. The survey showed that this group is less supportive of national action and less motivated to take individual steps than the alarmed and concerned groups.
The disengaged know very little about global warming. Only 30 per cent of them think global warming is happening.
Four categories of repondents
Based on survey done on 4,619 individuals from October 2021-January 2022. Source: Yale Program on Climate Change Communication
Moreover, 91 per cent of alarmed, 88 per cent of concerned and 74 per cent of cautious want a national programme that will disseminate knowledge on climate change.
Some 90 per cent of those alarmed, 88 per cent of those concerned and 75 per cent of cautious think a training programme for renewable energy jobs is necessary.
Also, 70 per cent of the alarmed group and 51 per cent of those concerned think human activities are responsible for global warming.
Some 45 per cent of those cautious are more likely to think global warming is caused mainly by natural environmental changes.
“Majorities in all four segments have noticed changes in local weather patterns, including rainfall,” Jagadish Thaker, project co-lead at the University of Queensland, said in a statement.
Many Indians claimed to have been personally affected by climate change — some 85 per cent of the alarmed reported personal experience with global warming. About 75 per cent of the concerned, 54 per cent of the cautious and 8 per cent of the disengaged groups also reported the same.
Some 65 per cent of those alarmed say that hot days have become more frequent in their local area compared to the past, while 48 per cent of those concerned and 37 per cent of both the cautious and disengaged agree.
Recovery from severe drought could take several months to several years, according to 78 per cent of those alarmed, 77 per cent of concerned, 65 per cent of cautious and 43 per cent of disengaged groups.
As for severe floods, 68 per cent of the alarmed, 64 per cent of the concerned, 52 per cent of the cautious and 39 per cent of the disengaged groups thought recovery could take several months to several years.
“These findings should encourage policymakers and businesses to take immediate action to address global warming and work towards developing sustainable solutions that benefit all segments of society,” Prakash noted.