India Ranks 10th in Climate Change Performance !

India Ranks 10^th in Climate Change Performance Index 2025 !

Rituraj Phukan

India ranks 10th in this year’s Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), down from the 7^th rank last year, but remaining among the highest performers.

Denmark holds its 4th-place ranking in this year’s CCPI and is again the highest-ranked of all countries surveyed.

The Netherlands rises to 5th in this year’s CCPI, up three places from 2024, while the United Kingdom improves its ranking substantially, up to 6th from 20 last year. Like in previous years, the top three places remain vacant.

India Ranks 10th in Climate Change Performance Index 2025 (Image: Powershift)

India receives a high ranking in the GHG Emissions and Energy Use categories, medium in Climate Policy, and low in Renewable Energy. While India is the world’s most populous country, it has relatively low per capita emissions and low energy use.

Renewables have rapidly expanded over the last decade and India strives for an international leadership role in green energies.

“The climate crisis is an existential threat to life on Earth. To reduce the magnitude of the crisis’ impacts, we must limit global warming to 1.5°C, as decided in the Paris Agreement. Only decisive action will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which are responsible for climate change. As an independent monitoring tool, the CCPI has a leading role in informing on the Paris Agreement’s implementation phase.”

The CCPI country experts expect India to meet its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). However, they emphasise that targets should be included for sectors beyond emissions and electricity. Domestically, sectors such as transport, industry, housing, and water are regulated, and the CCPI experts recommend also including these in the NDC.

In this past year, India has seen considerable progress in renewable energy policy, particularly in large-scale solar power projects and the launch of the Rooftop Solar Scheme. However, our experts are calling for more support for rooftop and other off-grid solar systems.

Energy efficiency standards have been introduced, but coverage remains inadequate. India is also advancing in electric vehicle deployment, especially two-wheelers.

Despite the positive developments, India remains heavily reliant on coal, with the experts noting that its phase-out is progressing too slowly. India is among the 10 countries with the largest developed coal reserves, and is currently planning to increase its production.

The experts’ recommendations include revising the country’s NDC to set more ambitious absolute emissions reduction targets across more sectors. The energy transition also should be accelerated while ensuring a just transition.

Since 2005, the CCPI has provided analysis of countries’ climate protection performance. It creates transparency in climate policy, makes it possible to compare climate protection efforts, and lets you see progress and setbacks.

It is published by a consortium of Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and Climate Action Network International. It is an independent monitoring tool for tracking countries’ climate mitigation performance.

The climate crisis is an existential threat to life on Earth (Image: Powwershift)

The CCPI indicates the climate mitigation efforts of 63 countries and the EU, which collectively account for over 90% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Using standardised criteria, the CCPI looks at four categories, with 14 indicators: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (40% of the overall score), Renewable Energy (20%), Energy Use (20%), and Climate Policy (20%).

Results are compiled with the aid of 450 national experts evaluating their countries’ most recent national and international climate policies.

The climate crisis is an existential threat to life on Earth. To reduce the magnitude of the crisis’ impacts, we must limit global warming to 1.5°C, as decided in the Paris Agreement. Only decisive action will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which are responsible for climate change. As an independent monitoring tool, the CCPI has a leading role in informing on the Paris Agreement’s implementation phase.

Rituraj Phukan: Founder, Indigenous People’s Climate Justice Forum; Co-Founder, Smily Academy ;National Coordinator for Biodiversity, The Climate Reality Project India; Member, IUCN Wilderness Specialist Group; Commission Member – IUCN WCPA Climate Change, IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation, IUCN WCPA Indigenous People and Protected Areas Specialist Groups, IUCN WCPA South Asia Region and IUCN WCPA-SSC Invasive Alien Species Task Force; Member, International Antarctic Expedition 2013; Climate Force Arctic 2019 ; Ambassador, Marine Arctic Peace Sanctuary. Rituraj Phukan is the Climate Editor, Mahabahu.

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