Protests in 12 Indian cities against Japan, G7 ‘push’ for natural gas, 'false' solutions in Asia

By Ashwin Parthasarathy*
Climate campaigners and groups held rallies in 12 cities of India have protested against Japan and the G7’s continued promotion of fossil gas and technologies. The protests happened ahead of the G7 Leaders Summit scheduled on May 19-21 in Hiroshima, Japan. Japan is this year’s G7 president and the only Asian member of the grouping of seven of the world's advanced economies, including Canada, Italy, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United States, all prominent fossil fuel financiers.

The protests in India were held outside the collector's office in Bodhgaya which has one of the largest Japanese tourist footfalls, led by the Indian Social Action Forum and All India Hawker Federation; Japanese Consulate Kolkata led by National Hawker Federation and Prasada village in Chhatisgarh led Nadi Ghati Morcha. These rallies called out the government of Japan for being among the world’s leading fossil fuel investors and their lacklustre stance towards phasing-out fossil fuels; promotion of fossil gas and false solutions like hydrogen and ammonia technology.
Japan is the largest public fossil fuel financier, with an annual average of USD 10.6 billion towards fossil fuel projects from 2019 to 2021 according to a report. At the same time there are tensions between Japan and other G7 members over their differences on carbon emissions and phase out of fossil fuel technologies.
In the recent communique from the G7 from the energy and climate ministers meeting last April affirmed their commitment to aligning with the Paris Agreement set in 2015. The ministers agreed to drastically increase solar capacity and offshore wind. However, they did not set a timeline for a gas phase-out and welcomed investments in gas subject to conditions. Technologies such as hydrogen and ammonia were also accepted as technologies that can help with the decarbonization process.

Renewables-based electricity is now the cheapest power option in most regions. According to research, renewables are already the default option for capacity additions in the power sector in almost all countries and dominate current investments. Renewables are also the most readily-available and cost-effective way to provide 90 per cent of all decarbonisation by 2050 -- that is, if currently installed renewable power capacity will be tripled by 2030.

“Japan and the rest of the G7 display a blatant disregard for the pressing needs of both people and the planet, instead of meetingaa their climate finance obligations and fulfilling their commitment to end by 2022 their public financing of fossil fuels,” said Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of Asian Peoples’ Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD) and Convenor of the Asian Energy Network (AEN).
Saktiman Ghosh, General Secretary of the National Hawker Federation felt, “As the host for this year’s G20 Summit, India has a deep responsibility of steering this powerful body of countries towards a cleaner future. Japan should not be allowed to interfere and use the G7 to derail the world by promoting false solutions! We also reject the notion that the new Indo-Pacific strategy will be used to export fossil gas, non-renewable hydrogen and ammonia in the region. This new kind of energy colonialism does not have a place in the equitable future for Asia.”
”No to LNG and strongly rejecting any Finance in Fossil fuel project in Asia. We demand a Climate safe future in the Globe. Let us join to create a better EARTH”, said Gautam Bandyopadhyay of Nadi-Ghati Morcha.
Vidya Dinker, President of Indian Social Action Forum said, "The leadership of the G7 and the G20 have the mandate and more importantly, the responsibility to urgently take action to arrest temperature rise and the impacts of the climate crisis. The hope and aspirations of millions in the global south are now anchored with them. We are holding this mobilisation in Bodhgaya an important spiritual node for many Japanese, so they can carry this clarion call to their government and the other G7 leaders that all excuses have run out, fossil fuel investments need to stop now."
---
*Asian People's Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD), a regional alliance of peoples’ movements, community organizations, coalitions, NGOs and networks

Comments

The silencing of conscience: Ideological attacks on India’s judiciary and free thought

By Sunil Kumar* “Volunteers will pick up sticks to remove every obstacle that comes in the way of Sanatan and saints’ work.” — RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat (November 6, 2024, Chitrakoot) Eleven months later, on October 6, 2025, a man who threw a shoe inside the Supreme Court shouted, “India will not tolerate insults to Sanatan.” This incident was not an isolated act but a continuation of a pattern seen over the past decade—attacks on intellectuals, writers, activists, and journalists, sometimes in the name of institutions, sometimes by individual actors or organizations.

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

History, culture and literature of Fatehpur, UP, from where Maulana Hasrat Mohani hailed

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a member of the Constituent Assembly and an extremely important leader of our freedom movement. Born in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, Hasrat Mohani's relationship with nearby district of Fatehpur is interesting and not explored much by biographers and historians. Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri has written a book on Maulana Hasrat Mohani and Fatehpur. The book is in Urdu. He has just come out with another important book, 'Hindi kee Pratham Rachna: Chandayan' authored by Mulla Daud Dalmai.' During my recent visit to Fatehpur town, I had an opportunity to meet Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri and recorded a conversation with him on issues of history, culture and literature of Fatehpur. Sharing this conversation here with you. Kindly click this link. --- *Human rights defender. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/vbrawat , X @freetohumanity, Skype @vbrawat

Citizens’ group to recall Justice Chagla’s alarm as India faces ‘undeclared' Emergency

By A Representative In a move likely to raise eyebrows among the powers-that-be, a voluntary organisation founded during the “dark days” of the Indira Gandhi -imposed Emergency has announced that it will hold a public conference in Ahmedabad to highlight what its office-bearers call today’s “undeclared Emergency.”

Celebrating 125 yr old legacy of healthcare work of missionaries

Vilas Shende, director, Mure Memorial Hospital By Moin Qazi* Central India has been one of the most fertile belts for several unique experiments undertaken by missionaries in the field of education and healthcare. The result is a network of several well-known schools, colleges and hospitals that have woven themselves into the social landscape of the region. They have also become a byword for quality and affordable services delivered to all sections of the society. These institutions are characterised by committed and compassionate staff driven by the selfless pursuit of improving the well-being of society. This is the reason why the region has nursed and nurtured so many eminent people who occupy high positions in varied fields across the country as well as beyond. One of the fruits of this legacy is a more than century old iconic hospital that nestles in the heart of Nagpur city. Named as Mure Memorial Hospital after a British warrior who lost his life in a war while defending his cou...

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Urgent need to study cause of large number of natural deaths in Gulf countries

By Venkatesh Nayak* According to data tabled in Parliament in April 2018, there are 87.76 lakh (8.77 million) Indians in six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While replying to an Unstarred Question (#6091) raised in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said, during the first half of this financial year alone (between April-September 2018), blue-collared Indian workers in these countries had remitted USD 33.47 Billion back home. Not much is known about the human cost of such earnings which swell up the country’s forex reserves quietly. My recent RTI intervention and research of proceedings in Parliament has revealed that between 2012 and mid-2018 more than 24,570 Indian Workers died in these Gulf countries. This works out to an average of more than 10 deaths per day. For every US$ 1 Billion they remitted to India during the same period there were at least 117 deaths of Indian Workers in Gulf ...

World Bank arm accused of hiding crucial report on Gujarat’s Tata Mundra power project

By A Representative The Centre for Financial Accountability (CFA) has accused the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO), the accountability arm of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), of concealing crucial evidence related to the Tata Mundra coal power project in Gujarat during the period when the case was being heard in U.S. courts. In a press statement released on October 10, 2025, CFA said that the CAO’s final monitoring report, which was completed in 2019 but released only in September 2025, revealed that IFC had failed to take remedial action for years, even as environmental and livelihood harms to local communities worsened.

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

Search This Blog