Temperature surge

The surge in temperatures, with several parts of India skipping the spring season conditions to enter summer-like weather, follows last year’s unusual pattern, but with a stark difference. In 2022, record temperatures and the onset of an early summer in March had taken farmers by surprise as winter crops started to shrivel. The fall in wheat output came amid the global disruptions because of dwindling supplies from the war-torn Russia-Ukraine region. This year, the economic impact of warm, dry conditions in February itself can be worse. There is also a heightened risk of forest fires, rapid glacier melt and quicker drying of water bodies. A dry winter season followed by abnormal heat is an early warning for the country to brace itself for extreme weather.

A few crop-protection advisories have been issued, but would hardly be enough to soothe frayed nerves. The farmer again finds himself being left to fend for himself. Government intervention is the need of the hour, be it in the form of advising citizens and shoring up resources while presenting realistic forecasts of what lies ahead, or simply leading a conversation on trying to make sense of nature’s freakish ways. The lack of a science-based, expert-driven policy of announcing pre-emptive and real-time measures is evident.

The planet-warming threshold of 1.5°C is feared to be breached this year. There could be a cascading impact on weather patterns, including the monsoon. According to a new report, ‘Gross Domestic Climate Risk’, China, the US and India are home to 80 per cent of the 50 at-risk states most vulnerable to climate change by 2050, and Punjab is among nine such Indian states. Projections were analysed of damage to the built environment from extreme weather and climate change, including flooding, forest fires and sea level rise. Apart from the potential economic fallout, the researchers have laid stress on governments ramping up efforts to reduce carbon emissions and adapt to extreme weather events. There’s a lesson for India here.