RAS question
India's contribution to global GHG emissions is approximately:
Correct answer: (B) About 7% (3rd largest emitter after China and USA).
India contributes about 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, making it the third-largest emitter after China and the United States.
Explanation
India's share is about 7% because the World Bank's SDG Atlas places India at 7.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2019, after China at 26.4% and the United States at 12.5%. India is the third-largest emitter in absolute terms, but the answer should not be read as a per-person comparison. India's per capita emissions, around 2.4 tCO2e, are well below the global average of about 6.3 tCO2e. So the correct option is the one that combines both scale and rank: roughly 7%, third after China and the United States.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) About 15% overstates India's share and is closer to the United States' share given in the prompt and the World Bank ranking.
- (C) About 25% is not India's share; it corresponds broadly to China's much larger share of global greenhouse gas emissions.
- (D) Less than 1% is far too low because both the prompt and the World Bank source place India near 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Concept
This tests India's position in global climate-change indicators: absolute emissions, country ranking and per capita contrast. It recurs in RAS because environment questions often link climate obligations with equity in emissions burden.