India Launches Net Zero Portal and NAPCC Dashboard to Strengthen Climate Action

Why in News?

• On 16 September 2026, Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Kirti Vardhan Singh launched India’s Net Zero Portal and the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) Dashboard during the World Ozone Day celebrations in Mumbai.
• The two digital platforms are intended to strengthen transparency, institutional coordination, monitoring and evidence-based decision-making in India’s climate action framework.
• The Net Zero Portal focuses on voluntary climate commitments by entities, while the NAPCC Dashboard enables consolidated monitoring of India’s National Missions on climate change.

Background

• World Ozone Day: World Ozone Day, officially known as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, is observed every year on 16 September.
• The United Nations General Assembly designated the day in 1994 to commemorate the signing of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer on 16 September 1987.
• The theme of World Ozone Day 2026 is: “Global Action for a Cooler Planet”
• The year 2026 also marks 10 years of the Kigali Amendment, adopted in 2016 to phase down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are powerful greenhouse gases widely used in cooling and refrigeration systems.

What is India’s Net Zero Portal?

• The Net Zero Portal is a centralised digital platform developed by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for the voluntary registration and disclosure of Net Zero commitments by Indian entities across different sectors.
• Companies, organisations and other participating entities can use the portal to formally declare their climate targets and periodically report their progress.

Key Features of the Net Zero Portal

Participating entities can:

• Disclose their greenhouse gas emissions.
• Declare their Net Zero target and timeline.
• Submit annual progress updates.
• Report Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions.
• Voluntarily report Scope 3 emissions.
• Provide details of their long-term Net Zero pathway.
• Report measures related to renewable energy, energy efficiency, technological interventions and carbon removals.

Entities successfully declaring their Net Zero targets will receive an acknowledgement from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).

Public access to declarations will also help create a consolidated national repository of voluntary Net Zero actions by industries and organisations.

Understanding Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 Emissions

• Scope 1 emissions are direct greenhouse gas emissions from sources owned or controlled by an organisation, such as emissions from factories or company vehicles.
• Scope 2 emissions are indirect emissions associated with purchased electricity, steam, heat or cooling consumed by an organisation.
• Scope 3 emissions include other indirect emissions occurring across an organisation’s value chain, such as transportation, suppliers, business travel, product use and waste management.
• The inclusion of emission disclosures can therefore provide a clearer picture of the climate footprint of participating entities.

What is the NAPCC Dashboard?

• The National Action Plan on Climate Change Dashboard provides a consolidated digital platform for monitoring the implementation and progress of National Missions operating under the NAPCC.
• It brings information, indicators and progress related to different climate missions onto a common digital platform.
• The dashboard currently covers nine National Missions and provides information across India’s states and Union Territories.

National Missions under NAPCC

The NAPCC framework currently covers the following nine missions:

1. National Solar Mission
2. National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency
3. National Mission on Sustainable Habitat
4. National Water Mission
5. National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem
6. National Mission for a Green India
7. National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture
8. National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change
9. National Mission on Climate Change and Human Health

The original NAPCC, released on 30 June 2008, contained eight core missions. Climate and health has subsequently become part of the expanded framework.

Why are the Two Platforms Significant?

1. Greater Climate Transparency

India’s climate policies involve several ministries, industries, state governments and private entities. A common digital reporting system can improve accessibility and transparency of climate-related information.

2. Strengthening Corporate Climate Accountability

Many companies announce Net Zero targets, but differences in reporting standards can make their progress difficult to assess. The Net Zero Portal provides a common national platform where voluntary commitments and subsequent progress can be disclosed.

3. Better Climate Governance

The NAPCC Dashboard can integrate information from different ministries, helping the government evaluate whether climate programmes are producing the intended results.

4. Data-Based Decision-Making

Reliable indicators can help policymakers identify gaps, revise programmes and allocate resources more effectively.

5. Supporting India’s Net Zero Transition

India has committed to achieving Net Zero emissions by 2070. Monitoring the contribution of different sectors, industries and government missions will therefore become increasingly important.

India’s Climate Commitments

• India announced its long-term objective of achieving Net Zero emissions by 2070 at COP26 in Glasgow.
• India subsequently submitted its Long-Term Low-Emission Development Strategy to the UNFCCC in November 2022.
• India further submitted its NDC for 2031–2035 in April 2026. The current NDC framework aims to reduce the emissions intensity of GDP and increase the share of non-fossil sources in the country’s installed electricity capacity while continuing the transition towards Net Zero by 2070.

Connection with the Montreal Protocol and Kigali Amendment

• The launch on World Ozone Day is also significant because ozone protection and climate action have become increasingly interconnected.
• The Montreal Protocol, 1987 was primarily created to phase out ozone-depleting substances.
• The Kigali Amendment, 2016, expanded climate benefits by requiring the phasedown of HFCs. HFCs do not significantly damage the ozone layer but have high global warming potential.
• According to UNEP, full implementation of the Kigali Amendment could avoid up to 0.5°C of global warming by the end of the century, with further benefits possible through improvements in cooling energy efficiency.

Significance for India

• These initiatives are particularly important because the country must simultaneously pursue rapid economic development, rising energy demand and climate mitigation.
• The Net Zero Portal can encourage businesses to adopt credible long-term decarbonisation strategies, while the NAPCC Dashboard can strengthen government oversight of national climate programmes.
• Together, the initiatives support a governance model based on measurement, disclosure, monitoring and accountability, which will become increasingly important as India moves towards its 2070 Net Zero objective.

Way Forward

• India should gradually strengthen standardised methodologies for greenhouse gas accounting and climate disclosures.
• Independent verification mechanisms can improve the credibility of voluntarily declared Net Zero targets and reduce greenwashing.
• The Net Zero Portal can eventually be integrated with other climate policy mechanisms, carbon markets and corporate sustainability reporting systems where appropriate.
• Regular updating of indicators on the NAPCC Dashboard will be essential to ensure that policymakers receive timely information.
• Greater participation of states, industries, research institutions and civil society can further improve the quality of climate data and policy implementation.

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