Science & TechClimate
India's climate plan scores 2 out of 32 on health, joint bottom of a 132-country scorecard
The Global Climate and Health Alliance says India's new climate pledge barely mentions health or air pollution, even as dirty air is linked to about two million deaths a year.
Key points
- India scored 2 out of 32 on the Healthy NDC Scorecard, level with Japan and New Zealand at the bottom.
- The scorecard says India's April climate pledge gave zero points on six of eight health indicators.
- Colombia topped the list with 29 points; only the EU among major emitters set an air-pollution target.
India’s latest climate pledge scores 2 out of a possible 32 for how well it protects people’s health, putting the country joint bottom of a global scorecard of 132 nations alongside Japan and New Zealand.
The Healthy NDC Scorecard, published by the Global Climate and Health Alliance, a group of more than 300 health professionals, civil society organisations and networks, looks at whether countries build health into their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the climate plans they file under the Paris Agreement. This is its third edition, after 2021 and 2023.
Where India lost its marks
The scorecard has eight indicators, each worth up to four points. India scored zero on six of them and one point each on health-sector action and integrated governance.
The alliance says the NDC India submitted in April does not adequately account for health, and that its emissions targets are not in line with the Paris goals. It estimates 186.2 deaths from air pollution for every 100,000 people in India, and says the country is heading for more than 2°C of warming above pre-industrial levels. India ranked ninth on the Climate Risk Index 2026, which covers the years 1995 to 2024.
Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at the Centre for Science and Environment, said: “It is inexplicable that, while air pollution claims roughly 2m lives annually in India...” She argued that the pledge ignores air pollution and short-lived pollutants such as black carbon, even though India endorsed the COP28 Declaration on Climate and Health.
Anjal Prakash, professor of public policy at FLAME University and an author of IPCC reports, said climate policy “cannot be divorced from public health”. He wants India’s next NDC to carry health indicators, assess the effects on vulnerable groups, strengthen health infrastructure and deal with worsening air quality.
How other countries did
Colombia topped the table with 29 points, followed by Nigeria on 25, Cambodia on 24, and Paraguay and Timor-Leste on 22 each. The UAE scored 19, Canada 16, Turkey 14, South Africa 13, the European Union 12 and Indonesia 11. Australia, China and Britain managed 9 each, Brazil 7, Russia 6 and South Korea 4. The United States was given 7, but its plan is not treated as active after its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement.
Among the big emitters, only the EU sets a specific target for cutting air pollution, and it has committed to phasing out HFCs by 2050. Just five countries, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and Paraguay, have set targets to reduce black carbon.
Nova Tebbe, a postdoctoral researcher at the alliance who led the study, said cutting short-lived climate pollutants “offers a triple win”, and warned that El Niño conditions were likely to make health impacts worse. Jeni Miller, the alliance’s executive director, said governments must see action on air quality as a vital part of climate action. Jess Beagley, its policy lead, said developing countries need finance from richer nations to carry out their plans.
What comes next
Health is expected to be on the agenda at COP31, the UN climate summit in Antalya, Turkey, in November. The scorecard’s authors want India to link its climate and clean-air policies when it next revises its pledge.