The world is pinning hope on India’s leadership and intellectual powerhouse for providing a solution to the climate crisis, Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland has said.

In an interview with PTI at the annual climate conference (COP28) here, Scotland said she waits in “joyful anticipation to see what India will decide to do”, as negotiators at the summit haggle over the best ways to slash greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the worsening of already severe climate impacts.

Asked about her expectations from India amid a growing push for a fossil fuel phase out, she said India has to “feed and care for 1.4 billion people”, almost half of the population of the 56-nation club called Commonwealth.