Shri. K R Narayanan President of India

The President of India, His Excellency Shri. K R Narayanan, was presented a copy of the Centre for Science and Environment’s latest publication, Green Politics: Global Environmental Negotiations –1, at a function in Rashtrapati Bhavan today. "This is a vital book," he said, adding that it would go a long way in protecting India’s interest, and those of the third world, in the international forum.

"CSE brought out the report because we realised that not a single government agency, environmentalist or academician had a full picture of what was happening at these global environmental negotiations," Anil Agarwal, CSE director, said while presenting the contents of the report to the President and a distinguished audience, including Dr Manmohan Singh.

Anju Sharma Coordinator of GEG Unit

Agarwal pointed out that the negotiations showed several dangerous trends from the point of view of developing countries. For instance, only Northern concerns are taken on board, whether it is the hole in the ozone layer which was found to cause cancer particularly to white skin, or the problems of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) travelling to the Arctic.

Because these negotiations are writing rules and regulations that will be the constitution for a future globalised world, it is important that developing countries participate in a coordinated

Shri. K R Narayan & Dr Manmohan Singh.

manner, and ensure that they do not compromise their interests. So far, these negotiations have not been given the attention they deserve in countries such as India.

For instance, the US realises that dealing with climate change poses an enormous risk to their economies, and the climate negotiations are dealt with by the US state department, and more than 200 people work on the issue. But even though climate change is a bigger economic and environmental threat to India, only one officer of the Indian government spends a third of his time working on the issue. Not once had climate change been discussed by the cabinet, even though it is now clear that there will be increased flooding in the already flood-prone North Eastern regions, and increased droughts in the already drought-prone central parts of the country.