Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asserted that India cannot ignore the neglect of climate finance, and called on developed nations to set a target of providing at least one per cent of their GDP for financing green projects in the developing world. Addressing the G20 Summit Session on Climate Change and Environment in Rome, Modi said that by forgetting climate justice, "we are not only doing injustice to the developing countries, but we are betraying entire humanity". As a vocal voice of the developing countries, India cannot ignore the neglect of climate finance by the developed nations, he asserted.

Without concrete progress on climate finance, pressuring the developing countries for climate action is "not justice", Modi said.

He suggested that the developed countries set a target of providing at least one per cent of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to finance green projects in developing countries, Indian news agencies said. 

At the session, Modi put three actionable points before the G20 partners -- the G20 countries should create a 'clean energy projects fund' which can be used in countries where peaking has not happened yet; they should create a network of clean-energy research institutions in G20 countries; and the G20 countries should form an organisation to create global standards in the field of green hydrogen, so that its production and use is encouraged.

India will also make its full contributions in all these efforts, he added.

Modi also asserted that India is moving ahead with ambitious goals on this issue of climate mitigation.

"When we announced our goals in Paris, many asked whether India would be able to do something like (creating) 175 GW of renewable energy. But India is not only rapidly achieving these goals but is also busy setting higher targets," he said.

Going beyond its Paris commitments, India has set a target of 26 million hectares of wasteland rehabilitation and Indian Railways, the world's largest passenger carrier serving an average of 8 billion passengers every year, has set a 'Net Zero by 2030' target, he said.

With this decision,the Indian Railways will mitigate 60 million tonnes of carbon emission per year, Modi said.

"We are working on the target of 20% ethanol blending in petrol by 2025," he said.

By increasing the number of Asian lions, tigers, rhinos, and dolphins, India has proved that our commitment to protecting the environment is not limited to the energy debate, Modi said.

India has never retreated from the responsibility of mitigation, nor will it ever do so, he asserted.

Due to the efforts made in the past few years, today India is one of the top five countries in the world in terms of renewable energy capacity, he highlighted and noted that the world also recognises this success of India.