For a long time, climate action has been associated with cutting Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. And while the number one global greenhouse gas continues to retain its top spot, the evolving consensus is that cutting short-term pollutants such as hydro fluorocarbons (HFCs) and black carbon, is equally, if not less crucial. On Wednesday, April 22, India will be among the group of countries discussing the phase-down of hydro fluorocarbons at the 35th Session of the Open-Ended Working Group of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol in Bangkok. In a proposal submitted on April 17, India has discussed the modalities of the phase-down to be undertaken, which includes financial assistance for industry to switch to alternative green technologies, if the agreement comes through. According to a March 2015 research paper brought out by the Institute of Governance and Sustainable Development, authors Durwood Zaelke, Nathan Borgford-Parnell and Stephen O. Andersen note that fast action under the Montreal Protocol can limit the growth of HFCs, prevent 100 to 200 billion tonnes of CO2 – equivalent emissions by 2050, and avoid up to 0.5°C of warming by 2100. Peter Bledsoe, Senior Energy and Policy Adviser at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, was appreciative of the Narendra Modi government’s willingness to consider amending the Montreal Protocol to phase down HFCs and said India could now emerge as a global leader in climate action. Professor V. Ramanathan, Distinguished Professor of Climate Sciences at the University of California at San Diego, told The Hindu that it was way back in 1975 that he had discovered the dangerous impact of halocarbons, the class of chemical compounds, including chlorofluorocarbons and HFCs. In 2009, Mr. Ramanathan revisited this subject, and found that only by cutting short-lived climate pollutants could we stop world temperatures from reaching the 2 degree global warming threshold by 2050. He drew attention to how 1.6 million lives had been lost due to air pollution in India. Also 30-40 per cent of crops in the Indo-Gangetic plain were found destroyed due to emission of black carbons and HFCs. Transition cost But Distinguished Fellow (emeritus) at The Energy Research Institute (TERI) Chandrasekhar Dasgupta was wary of the enthusiasm displayed by the Indian government and climate scientists. “There is considerable cost involved in transitioning to new technologies,” he said. Under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, there was an agreement to reimburse full incremental cost of any project/scheme to developing countries switching to greener technologies. But under the Montreal Protocol, whether that would be the case is yet to be seen. Although, Mr. Bledsoe pointed out that countries bound by its agreement could access the Montreal Protocol Fund for their transition needs. On Earth Day, India will be among the countries discussing the phase-down of hydro fluorocarbons