India’s greenhouse emissions rate dropped by a faster-than-expected 33% in 14 years as renewable energy generation rose and forest cover increased, according to two officials privy to latest assessment made for submission to the United Nations.

The report’s findings showed India well on the way to meeting a commitment to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), to reduce emissions intensity by 45% from the 2005 level by 2030.

India’s rate of emissions intensity – the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions emitted for every unit increase of gross domestic product (GDP) – fell by 33% from 2005 to 2019, officials privy to the preparations of the Third National Communication (TNC) report said.

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Many countries are preparing their TNC reports to update the UNFCCC on their efforts to mitigate emissions.

India’s average rate of reduction in emissions increased to 3% annually in the period 2016-2019, from just about 1.5% in the period 2014-2016.

It was the fastest reduction so far, and was largely attributable to the government’s push towards renewables, even as fossil fuel continues to dominate the energy mix.

“There is continuous reduction in the emission intensity of the Indian economy, which shows the country has been able to completely decouple its economic growth from greenhouse gas emissions,” one official, who declined to be named