The strategy, announced last week by prime minister Manmohan Singh, makes no commitment to cut carbon emissions, but maps out a gradual shift to greater reliance on renewable energy sources such as solar power.
"Solar energy is like dollar bills lying on the sidewalk, we just have to pick them up," the BBC quoted Pachauri as saying.
He said that for India to cut carbon emissions now would mean poverty for millions of people. "India is a growing economy with 76 million rural households still without access to electricity," said Pachauri. "How can we levy a cap [on emissions] when millions are living in a state of total deprivation?"
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