New Delhi, May 16 -- Climate Change & You is a fortnightly newsletter written by Bibek Bhattacharya and Sayantan Bera. Subscribe to Mint's newsletters to get them directly in your inbox.

How much nations consume, and how extravagantly, has a direct impact on the health of the planet, via what is known as the carbon footprint of consumption. The problem is that consumption is crucial to economic growth and job sustainability. Statesmen, therefore, call for austerity only in extreme situations. The world is in one now due to the war in West Asia that has upended energy markets and disrupted the supply of many related commodities.

So, it's not surprising that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appealed to Indians to curtail consumption of ce...