UN secretary general urges India to swiftly turn away from coal

Antonio Guterres tells country to stop building coal-fired power stations for sake of climate

India must swiftly and permanently turn away from coal despite its need for cheap energy, the UN secretary general has urged, aiming to revive global action on the climate crisis as the world begins to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic.

Antonio Guterres told a virtual audience on Friday morning that coal use must be phased out in India, with no new coal-fired power stations after this year, and that fossil fuel subsidies must be ended.