KPMG in India released this report on 17th March 2026 at India Climate Week 2026 in collaboration with Carbon Markets Association of India (CMAI). It demonstrates how circularity aligns with policy design, market architecture and digital infrastructure to create a trusted and scalable mitigation pathway for India, while providing a blueprint to convert circular actions into measurable climate value and investable carbon assets.
India’s development trajectory is advancing at a moment when climate ambition, resource security, economic competitiveness and carbon market evolution are converging. As the global economy shifts from linear extraction to systems built on efficiency and regeneration, India’s pathway to net zero depends not only on clean energy but on how intelligently it designs, uses, and circulates materials. This calls for a rapidly evolving carbon market architecture global and domestic that protects material quality and safety as they are reused, repaired, or recycled. Internationally, expectations around baselines, traceable material flows, transparent Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) and Article 6 alignment are tightening, while nationally, the Energy Conservation Act 2022 and the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) are shaping a compliance and voluntary ecosystem. Circularity is now a core pillar of India’s growth strategy, reducing material use and extending product life with a safety first approach.
Additionally, the domestic carbon systems in India are growing in line with global carbon market rules, with a strong focus on integrity. High quality carbon credits now require clear data, strict baselines, transparent monitoring, and concrete proof that they create real extra impact. At the same time, the Paris Agreement’s Article 6 allows countries to approve international carbon credit transfers using UN supervised systems. This means well designed circular economy projects with reliable tracking, strong accounting, and proven additionality which can now reach premium global buyers, not just local markets.
This paper elucidates how circular initiatives across waste, materials, industrial processes, construction, organics, and nature based systems translate into measurable emission reductions and outlines the technical mechanisms that enable credible carbon monetisation.
