Climate Change is a major issue requiring global co-operation to mitigate its effects.In the recent past, there have been many unusual climatic events that have been attributed to climate change. Some of these are as follows
1. Unseasonal Rain and Hail - Large parts of India have been inundated by unseasonal rainfall and hail. This has aggravated farmer distress by affecting the standing crops. In extreme cases, the unseasonal rain has also caused floods causing widespread damage.
2. Extreme Heat Waves - There has been a spike in the frequency as well as intensity of heat waves. While IPCC estimates that the global average temperatures have risen by 0.8 degree centigrade in the past 100 years, in selected regions like south India, the average temperature rise has been of the order of 2-4 degrees centigrade.
3. Monsoon Variations - Climate change also affects the global wind patterns which has an effect on the monsoon winds that bring rains to India. The time and quantity of precipitation is majorly affected.
These natural disasters have the following effects:
1. They lead to agrarian distress as the crops are highly vulnerable to climate change.
2. It leads to a rise in deaths either by flooding or due to thermal stress. The poor are disproportionately affected as they cannot afford or otherwise access mitigation measures.
3. These events also have inflationary tendencies as they can cause shortages in the supply of food grains and rise in the demand of energy.
While due to their very nature, such events cannot be predicted, their effects can be mitigated by developing a proper plan in order to counter them. A study should also be conducted to ascertain the reasons behind the disproportionate effects of a heat wave in the southern state. Mitigation strategy would flow from the results of such a study.
1. Unseasonal Rain and Hail - Large parts of India have been inundated by unseasonal rainfall and hail. This has aggravated farmer distress by affecting the standing crops. In extreme cases, the unseasonal rain has also caused floods causing widespread damage.
2. Extreme Heat Waves - There has been a spike in the frequency as well as intensity of heat waves. While IPCC estimates that the global average temperatures have risen by 0.8 degree centigrade in the past 100 years, in selected regions like south India, the average temperature rise has been of the order of 2-4 degrees centigrade.
3. Monsoon Variations - Climate change also affects the global wind patterns which has an effect on the monsoon winds that bring rains to India. The time and quantity of precipitation is majorly affected.
These natural disasters have the following effects:
1. They lead to agrarian distress as the crops are highly vulnerable to climate change.
2. It leads to a rise in deaths either by flooding or due to thermal stress. The poor are disproportionately affected as they cannot afford or otherwise access mitigation measures.
3. These events also have inflationary tendencies as they can cause shortages in the supply of food grains and rise in the demand of energy.
While due to their very nature, such events cannot be predicted, their effects can be mitigated by developing a proper plan in order to counter them. A study should also be conducted to ascertain the reasons behind the disproportionate effects of a heat wave in the southern state. Mitigation strategy would flow from the results of such a study.
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