INDIA GREEN ECONOMY BAROMETER 2018

The India Green Economy Barometer 2018 finds that while India has high potential for a green transition and has made significant strides in renewable energy and social inclusion, the overall progress is slow and insufficient. The report identifies key blockages, including the perception that environmental protection hinders economic growth and a lack of mature green financial markets. It highlights successes in solar capacity expansion and corporate social responsibility but warns that a 'business-as-usual' approach threatens long-term wellbeing due to natural resource overuse and rising inequality.

• India's overall performance in the green economy transition is low; in 2016, it ranked 68 out of 80 countries in the Global Green Economy Index (GGEI), performing particularly poorly in the Environment Dimension, Leadership and Climate Change, and Efficiency Sectors, though it ranked near the top twenty in Markets & Investment.
• The transition is hindered by several systemic barriers, most notably the prevailing belief among policymakers and businesses that environmental protection comes at the expense of economic development, alongside the view that green technology is not cost-competitive or reliable.
• India has seen rapid growth in renewable energy, specifically expanding its solar capacity from 2.6 GW in 2014 to 20.0 GW by January 2018, with over USD 42 billion invested in the renewable energy sector since 2014.
• India is a global leader in mandated corporate social responsibility, being the first country to legally require a 2 per cent CSR spend for companies meeting specific profit, net worth, or turnover thresholds; companies spent over INR 250 Billion on CSR in 2015.
• The construction sector is highly resource-intensive, accounting for 30% of India's electricity consumption, though there is a trend toward green buildings and increased fly ash utilization, which rose from 13% in 1999 to 57% in 2014.
• Economic tools to internalize environmental externalities are in early stages, though some progress exists, such as the Clean Environment Cess on coal production, which generated over INR 530 billion since 2010, and the use of compensatory afforestation under the Forest Act 1980.
• Social inequality remains a critical challenge for a 'fair' green economy; as of 2015, the top 0.1% of the population captured a higher share of growth than the bottom 50%, and 96% of the adult population held wealth below USD 10,000.

APA

Bhamra, A., Medha, Patel, S. C., & Singh, T. (2018). INDIA GREEN ECONOMY BAROMETER 2018. Green Economy Coalition. https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/Barometers-2018/India-Barometer-2018-Full-November-Draft.pdf

Chicago

Bhamra, Anshul, Medha, Sonia Cyrus Patel, and Tarang Singh. INDIA GREEN ECONOMY BAROMETER 2018. Green Economy Coalition, 2018. https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/Barometers-2018/India-Barometer-2018-Full-November-Draft.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bhamra |first1=Anshul |last2=Medha |last3=Patel |first3=Sonia Cyrus |last4=Singh |first4=Tarang |title=INDIA GREEN ECONOMY BAROMETER 2018 |publisher=Green Economy Coalition |date=2018 |url=https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/Barometers-2018/India-Barometer-2018-Full-November-Draft.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bhamra2018india, author = {Bhamra, Anshul and Medha and Patel, Sonia Cyrus and Singh, Tarang}, title = {{INDIA GREEN ECONOMY BAROMETER 2018}}, institution = {Green Economy Coalition}, year = {2018}, url = {https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/Barometers-2018/India-Barometer-2018-Full-November-Draft.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }