Read the passage and answer the questions:
The developed countries of the North want to discuss the environmental issue as it stands now and want everyone to be equally responsible for ecological conservation. The developing countries of the South feel that much of the ecological degradation in the world is the product of industrial development undertaken by the developed countries. If they have caused more degradation, they must also take more responsibility for undoing the damage now. Moreover, the developing countries are in the process of industrialisation and they must not be subjected to the same restrictions, which apply to the developed countries. Thus the special needs of the developing countries must be taken into account in the development, application, and interpretation of rules of international environmental law. This argument was accepted in the Rio Declaration at the Earth Summit in 1992 and is called the principle of ‘common but differentiated responsibilities’. The relevant part of the Rio Declaration says that “States shall cooperate in the spirit of global partnership to conserve, protect and restore the health and integrity of the Earth’s ecosystem.”
What is the goal of the Rio Declaration?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Global partnership to conserve, protect and restore health and integrity of Earth’s ecosystem.
Option (1) Global partnership to conserve, protect and restore health and integrity of Earth’s ecosystem. — Correct. The Rio Declaration says that “States shall cooperate in the spirit of global partnership to conserve, protect and restore the health and integrity of the Earth’s ecosystem.”
Option (2) Conduct research on international efforts to clean outer space — Incorrect. The Declaration speaks of the Earth’s ecosystem, not of cleaning outer space.
Option (3) Build capabilities of the Global South to increase their international green footprint — Incorrect. Its goal is a global partnership of all states, not a programme for the South alone.
Option (4) Set targets for Global South to calibrate the rise in global temperatures in the Antarctic continental region — Incorrect. The Declaration asks all states to cooperate to protect the Earth’s ecosystem; it does not single out the Global South, and it says nothing about temperatures in the Antarctic region.
NCERT (2025-26): “Common but Differentiated Responsibilities … Thus the special needs of the developing countries must be taken into account in the development, application, and interpretation of rules of international environmental law. This argument was accepted in the Rio Declaration at the Earth Summit in 1992 and is called the principle of ‘common but differentiated responsibilities’. The relevant part of the Rio Declaration says that ‘States shall cooperate in the spirit of global partnership to conserve, protect and restore the health and integrity of the Earth’s ecosystem. In view of the different contributions of global environmental degradation, states have common but differentiated responsibilities. The developed countries acknowledge the responsibility that they bear in the international pursuit of sustainable development in view of the pressures their societies place on the global environment and of the technological and financial resources they command.’…” |