India has targeted drastic carbon dioxide intensity cuts over the next 10 years, a government report has shown.

The world's fourth-largest emitter of carbon dioxide is aiming to reduce its carbon intensity by 24 per cent by 2020 compared with 2005 levels, according to provisional government figures obtained by the Reuters news agency on Wednesday.

Carbon intensity is the amount of carbon dioxide emitted for each unit of gross domestic product.

By 2030, India estimates it could achieve a reduction in its carbon emissions by 37 per cent from 2005 levels.

Government sources have said Jairam Ramesh, India's environment minister, will make a statement in parliament on Thursday in which he could announce the targets.

Broad projections

India's final targets, likely to be presented at next week's global climate change talks in Copenhagen could reflect a broad range rather than a specific figure a senior government official said.

This is because the country's carbon intensity projections are based on a scenario in which the country achieves 20 per cent great energy efficiency by 2020 from 2007 levels.

India has been under pressure to announce details of how it will control its growing carbon emissions, and issuing targets will likely strengthen its position at the Copenhagen conference.

China, the US and Russia, the highest, second-highest and third-highest world emitters respectively, have unveiled plans to curb greenhouse gas emissions, leaving India the only major polluter still to issue any targets.

The UN talks in Copenhagen were aimed at settling a legally-binding deal after arguments between rich and poor nations about who should cut emissions, by how much and who should pay.

While hopes of establishing a legally-binding protocol at the summit have largely faded, a substantive political pact may be agreed to at the meeting instead.