# How much CO2 does India emit? > But per person, the average Indian released just 2.2 tonnes. Coal dominates the total. Here are five key numbers to understand India's carbon dioxide emissions. **India emitted 3.19 billion tonnes of CO2 in 2024** In 2024, India's annual CO2 emissions reached 3.19 billion tonnes, accounting for 8.3% of the world's total. Yet almost all of that comes from coal, 2,117 million tonnes, with oil and gas contributing much smaller shares. Cumulatively since 1850, India has emitted 66.07 billion tonnes, a tiny fraction of the global historical total. Divided by its vast population, each Indian emits only 2.2 tonnes per year, a figure that remains low compared to citizens of early-industrialised nations. This page walks you through the five essential charts that explain India's carbon footprint. ## How much CO2 did India emit in 2024? In 2024, India released 3.19 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide. That is the annual total counted where the fuel is burned, what scientists call production-based territorial emissions. These estimates, from the Global Carbon Project via Our World in Data, capture CO2 from fossil fuels and cement production inside the country. India now ranks among the largest annual emitters in the world. But this number did not appear overnight. In 1858, India’s emissions were just 3,94,481 tonnes. The chart shows how the line climbed slowly for more than a century, then tilted sharply upward after 2000. In the past two decades alone, emissions roughly doubled. The steep rise mirrors the expansion of power generation, industry, and transport across the country. One important caveat: these numbers count only what is emitted within India’s territory; they do not include CO2 embedded in imported goods. That is why the next step is to understand where the CO2 actually comes from. ## What fuels drive India's CO2 emissions? Almost all of India’s energy-related CO2 comes from three fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. In 2024, total energy-related CO2 reached 2,871.78 million tonnes. Coal alone accounted for 2,117.06 million tonnes. That is nearly three times the emissions from oil, which stood at 612.59 million tonnes. Natural gas added just 142.13 million tonnes. The chart overlays the three fuel lines. You can see coal pulling away from the other two, especially after 2000. The gap between the coal line and the oil and gas lines widened sharply, reflecting how India’s power grid and industry still rely overwhelmingly on coal. Oil emissions rose too, driven by road transport and petrochemicals. Gas, the cleanest of the three, grew from a tiny base of 3.11 million tonnes in 1980 but remains a minor share. The fuel-wise data, from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, cover only energy-related CO2 and begin in 1980; they exclude industrial processes and land-use change. ## What portion of the world's CO2 comes from India? In 2024, India contributed 8.3% of all CO2 emitted globally. That is up from just 0.1% in 1858. The line chart shows a long, near-flat stretch through the colonial and early post-independence years, then a steady climb from the 1980s onward. This rising share means that out of every 100 tonnes of CO2 released into the atmosphere in a year, more than 8 now come from India. The percentage is calculated by dividing India's territorial emissions by the world total; both numbers come from Our World in Data. The jump reflects India’s own rapid emission growth and the slower growth or decline in some other large emitters. A rising share is not automatically a “bad” trend; it can simply mean India’s economy is growing while others have begun to shift. But it also means India’s weight in global climate discussions has become much heavier. ## How much CO2 has India emitted in total since industrial times? Climate change is not about any single year. It is about how much CO2 has built up in the atmosphere over centuries. India’s cumulative total since 1850 reached 66.07 billion tonnes in 2024. The line starts at just 3,94,481 tonnes in 1858 and climbs relentlessly, with the steepest rise in the last two decades. Each year’s emissions are added to the running sum; the line never goes down. These numbers come from the cumulative CO₂ series in Our World in Data, which adds up each year's production-based emissions. This cumulative number reveals historical responsibility: early industrialisers who burned fossil fuels for 150 years still dominate the global stock. India’s share of total historical emissions remains very small, even though its annual contribution is now large. Why does this matter? Because CO2 stays in the atmosphere for centuries, the warming we see today is the result of all past emissions, not just this year's. ## Is India's CO2 high when you consider its large population? Total emissions can make a country look like a huge polluter. But dividing the number by the population tells a different story. In 2024, India’s per capita CO2 emissions were 2.2 tonnes per person. That is the average amount of CO2 released for every Indian, from a newborn to an elderly person. In 1858, it was virtually zero. The line chart shows that per capita emissions stayed below 0.5 tonnes until the 1970s, then rose gradually to cross 1 tonne around 2000 and 2 tonnes by 2022. At 2.2 tonnes, the average Indian emits far less than a citizen of an early-industrialised nation. This metric, published by Our World in Data, is calculated by dividing territorial emissions by UN population estimates. It does not excuse the large national total, but it reframes the question: who should pay for the transition when per-person energy use is still so modest? The average also hides wide gaps; many Indians emit far less than 2.2 tonnes, and a small affluent minority emits far more. ## Sources - Annual CO₂ emissions, cumulative emissions, per capita emissions, and world share from Our World in Data based on the Global Carbon Project. - Fuel‑wise energy‑related CO₂ emissions from U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). --- Source: [This Indian Life](https://thisindianlife.today/articles/how-much-co2-does-india-emit/) · Updated 2026-06-02. Licensed CC BY 4.0. Please cite as "This Indian Life — https://thisindianlife.today".