Dec. 17—NEW DELHI — Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by Indian scheduled domestic flights almost doubled between 2012 and 2018, while the CO2 emission by scheduled Indian operators to and from international destinations also rose sharply during this period, minister of state for civil aviation V.K. Singh informed Parliament on Thursday.

Emission of CO2 for Indian scheduled passenger airlines operating on domestic routes rose to 12,307,000 tonnes during 2018 from 6,135,000 tonnes in 2012, Singh said in response to a query from member of Parliament Girish Chandra.

Emissions for such airlines operating on domestic routes have subsequently fallen during 2019 and 2020 to 11,843,000 tonnes and 6,023,000 tonnes, respectively, because of the impact of the covid-19 pandemic, which saw a significant decline in air passenger traffic.

Emissions of CO2 by scheduled Indian operators to and from international destinations rose to 8,441,000 tonnes in 2018 from 5,425,000 tonnes in 2012, before falling to 7,057,000 tonnes and 3,194,000 tonnes, during 2019 and 2020, respectively, Singh informed Parliament.

"Measures taken by airlines to reduce carbon footprint include rationalization of operating times/ procedures, use of renewable energy, and use of alternative fuels in ground handling vehicles," Singh said.

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