Make India Climate Smart: We have big infrastructure plans but forget to review them through a climate change lens
India will invest billions of dollars in public infrastructure over the next few years. Government policies also aim to massively increase private investments across sectors – manufacturing, services and agriculture. Each of these policies and investments will have time horizons spanning five to 50 years.
Examples of planned infrastructure include – 100 new airports with an investment of $60 billion, interlinking of rivers at a budget of Rs 5.5 lakh crore, a linked network of ports through Sagarmala at an outlay of Rs 4 lakh crore. At a different scale, just one project – the 29.2 km coastal road planned in one city, Mumbai – will cost Rs 10,000 crore.
All these initiatives will impact the lives and livelihoods of millions, and will compete for finite and scarce public resources. But are any of them being screened against the biggest existential threat humanity has ever faced – climate change? Unfortunately, the answer is NO.
You may also want to read
Article
SSIR | Does Everything in the Social Sector Need to Scale?
by Tanya Kak For at least two decades, one question has structured much of how philanthropy and the social innovation ecosystem think about change: Can it scale? The question appears in grant[...]
Others
Press Release | Supported by Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies, a New Public Observation Tower Project Planned at Bannerughatta Biological Park, Bengaluru
Through a grant of INR 5 Crore, the project aims to enhance visitor experience and increase conservation awareness, and visitor engagement Bengaluru, March 24, 2026 — Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies (RNPF)[...]
Article
IE | Rohini Nilekani writes: Indian philanthropy can step in to mitigate climate disasters’ effects
Whether in education, healthcare, skill building, agriculture or any other sector, there are severe climate adjacencies that will have to be addressed urgently. Philanthropy can provide both the high-risk capital[...]