India, Feb. 20 -- The conversation around Artificial Intelligence (AI) and climate action must move beyond technological optimism. The defining question is not whether India can build advanced AI systems, but whether those systems can materially reduce emissions, improve energy productivity and unlock credible climate finance at scale. The climate crisis today is not simply an environmental concern. It is a macroeconomic stress factor influencing capital flows, industrial competitiveness, trade access and fiscal stability. In this context, AI becomes a strategic economic instrument.

India has already demonstrated technological capability across meteorological modelling, satellite-based land monitoring and sensor driven environmental anal...