Climate change is primarily influenced by the total stock of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere and not by the annual GHG emissions. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the economy of developing countries is more vulnerable to climate change. However, their contribution to the greenhouse problem has been much smaller than that of developed countries. So far, developed countries have been responsible for more than 60 per cent of GHGs added to the atmosphere in the last 100 years (WRI 2001). It is recognized by the United Nations Framework Convention (UNFCCC), that the largest share of historical and current global emissions of GHGs has originated in developed countries. In terms of annual contributions too, the level of emissions across different countries shows considerable variations in terms of absolute amounts and per capita emissions. India figures among the top ten contributors to GHG emissions, but the current per capita gross emission in India is only onesixth of the world's average. It has been realized that India is highly vulnerable to climate change because its economy is heavily reliant on climate-sensitive sectors like agriculture and forestry, and because its low-lying, densely populated coastline is threatened by a potential rise in sea level.

Despite its low contribution to the global atmospheric GHG concentrations and its commitment for the development of the nation, India has been undertaking numerous initiatives that contribute significantly to the abatement of GHGs (MOEF 2002).