Do energy consumption and carbon emissions impact economic growth? New insights from India using ARDL approach.

This paper investigates the association among energy consumption, carbon‐dioxide emission, and India's economic growth along with supplemental variables including foreign direct investment, population density, inflation, and agricultural land. An autoregressive distributive lag model is applied over annual time‐series data from 1985 to 2019. Further, the robustness and novelty of the model are confirmed by applying fully modified ordinary‐least‐square, dynamic ordinary‐least‐square, canonical co‐integrating regression, variance decomposition, and impulse response function. The analysis results indicate that a cointegration association exists among variables. In the short run, the profound determinants of economic development are energy consumption, carbon‐dioxide emission, inflation, and agricultural land. In the long run, both inflation and agricultural land significantly negatively influence economic growth while carbon emission drives a positive impact. Interestingly, a one‐way Granger causality runs from economic growth towards energy consumption, carbon emission, and agricultural land. The new research presents a comprehensive understanding of economic growth indicators, aiding policymakers, and advancing existing literature. Consequently, as a recommendation, the policymakers should constitute explicit goals for renewable energy consumption to stimulate sustainable economic growth with carbon emission reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]