19.4 ndian onom
(xi) compilation of data or information on The Agreement comprises of 29 articles and is
sustainable development; and supported by 139 decisions of the COP. It covers
(xii) effective follow-up and review all the crucial areas identified as essential for a
architecture. comprehensive and balanced agreement, including
In comparison to the MDGs, the SDGs are mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage, finance,
very comprehensive with provisions of indicators technology development and transfer, capacity
for all of its 169 targets which need a proper building and transparency of action and support.
monitoring mechanism—a challenge for the A marked departure from the past is the
countries of the world. Financing the goals will be Agreement’s bottom-up approach, allowing
another challenge in this regard. each nation to submit its own national plan for
reducing greenhouse gas emissions, rather than
inDiA AnD the sDgs trying to repeat a top-down approach advocated
India’s draft national SDG indicators are by the Kyoto Protocol, giving each country an
being developed by Ministry of Statistics and emission reduction target. Salient features of the
Programme Implementation with inputs from Agreement3:
Central Ministries and various other stakeholders (i) It acknowledges the development
and are now at an advanced stage of finalization. imperatives of developing countries by
Going forward, a monitoring and reporting system recognising their right to development
will be set up to regularly take stock of the and their efforts to harmonize it with
implementation process and generate credible the environment, while protecting the
information and evidence on progress of the interests of the most vulnerable.
SDGs with the base year as 2016. In the process (ii) It seeks to enhance the ‘implementation
of implementation, the NITI Aayog will collect, of the Convention’ while reflecting
validate and document best practices. the principles of equity and CBDR-
RC (Common but Differentiated
parIs aGrEEmEnt (cop 21) Responsibilities and Respective
Capabilities), in the light of different
The 21st Conference of Parties (COP 21) under national circumstances.
the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework
(iii) Countries are required to communicate
Convention on Climate Change) took place in
to the UNFCCC climate action plans
Paris by December 2015. The Paris Agreement on
known as nationally determined
post-2020 actions on climate change will succeed
contributions (NDCs) every five years.
the Kyoto Protocol. Unlike the Kyoto Protocol,
Each Party’s successive NDC will
it provides a framework for all countries to take
represent a progression beyond the Party’s
action against climate change. Placing emphasis
then current NDC thereby steadily
on concepts like climate justice and sustainable
increasing global effort and ambition in
lifestyles, the Paris Agreement for the first time
the long-term.
brings together all nations for a common cause
under the UNFCCC. One of the main focus of (iv) It is not mitigation-centric and includes
the agreement is to hold the increase in the global other important elements such as
average temperature to well below 2°C above pre- adaptation, loss and damage, finance,
industrial level and on driving efforts to limit it 3. Ministry of Finance, Economic Survey 2015-16, Vol.
even further to 1.5°C. 2, pp. 179–181.