ACCESS TO FINANCING IN INDIA AND ITS IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT IN THE FORM OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Access to finance has played an important role in Indias economic growth, but the impact of this growth on the environment has not been studied enough. This paper looks at how credit in personal loans, agriculture, industry, services, farmer schemes and ESG financing has shaped development and then how that development has affected the environment. Sector wise data and graphs are used to show how credit deployment supported growth in these areas. The environmental side is studied through indicators such as emissions, groundwater use, waste from construction, fertiliser use and the adoption of sustainable practices. The findings show that while financing in personal loans, agriculture, industry and services has supported expansion, it has also brought higher emissions, waste, resource pressure and pollution. At the same time, farmer schemes and ESG financing have shown how credit can also reduce some of these effects by supporting sustainable practices. The study makes the point that finance itself is not good or bad, but the way it is directed decides whether it adds to environmental problems or helps solve them.