For the first time, India got its climate change assessment report by its state-owned scientific institutions.
The report titled ‘Assessment of Climate Change over the Indian Region’ reports a substantial rise in the country’s hot and cold temperatures in the coming years.
It says the average temperature in India will rise by 4.4 degrees Celsius, with heat waves projected to grow by 3-4 times and tropical cyclones increasing substantially.
Compared to the last 2-3 decades, the sea level is expected to rise by 30 cm by the end of this century.
The report found that the temperatures of the warmest days and coldest nights have increased by 0.63 degrees Celsius and 0.4 degrees in the last 30 years (1986-2015).
From the above numbers, the future temperatures will rise to 4.7 degrees and 5.7 degrees Celsius, respectively.
However, the report does not have much about the city or state-wise projections.
Stating that droughts and floods have increased in the past few decades, the report said humid regions in Central India are becoming drought-prone regions.
The risk scenario has increased around West Bengal, Eastern UP, Gujarat, and Konkan, along with major urban areas in Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai.
“The need for a comprehensive assessment report on climate change was felt for a long time. This is the first-ever climate change assessment report for India…This report will be beneficial for policymakers, researchers, social scientists, economists, and students,” M Rajeevan, Secretary, MoES.
The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) prepared this report, and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology edited it.
