Green bodies in India today hailed the coming into force of the Paris agreement on climate change which they termed as "inclusive" and one that will mark the "end of fossil fuel era".
They, however, said more needed to be done now to restrict the annual rise in global warming below 1.5 degrees for which India should give priority to renewable energy over energy produced by using coal.
The Paris agreement came into force today, 30 days after the date on which at least 55 signatory countries to the Convention accounting for a minimum of 55 per cent of the total global greenhouse gas emissions deposited their instruments of ratification.
"From now on, serious negotiations should take place on the issue of procedure and outcome. It is clear that terms of action pledged by the countries is not sufficient enough.
"Much more hard work has to be done so that countries, especially the developed ones, can increase their ambition (of cutting emissions). Civil societies need to play a crucial role as well," deputy director general Centre for Science and Environment Chandra Bhushan told PTI.
Director General of TERI Ajay Mathur said the swift coming into force of the agreement reflects the changed sensibilities across the world in addressing climate change and the wide appreciation of the need to act expeditiously.
"The Paris Agreement is inclusive, recognizing the development imperatives of nations like India and the developing world. It is just, upholding and operationalizing the principles of common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities," he said.
India ratified the Paris agreement on October 2, the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Till now around 94 nations have ratified it out of 197 Parties to the Convention.
"In the coming weeks at the 22nd session of the Conference of Parties in Marrakesh in Morocco, the nations of the world will look to define actions that can be fast-forwarded in the four years before the requirements of the Agreement become operative in 2020. Today thus marks not the end, but the beginning of this journey," said Mathur.
Greenpeace International Executive Director Jennifer Morgan said that by committing to the Paris agreement the governments have underscored the inevitable global transition away from fossil fuels.
"We need to see all governments' national plans be much more ambitious in cutting emissions because their current contributions to this agreement are nowhere near enough to achieve its goals and prevent dangerous climate change.
"We expect that in the next couple of weeks, at the Marrakesh climate talks, governments will start addressing this dangerous gap with the urgency our planet requires," said Morgan.
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