Flood and drought in India
Like in past decades, nature doesn’t seem to be equally loving and caring for all the regions in India this year and decade too. Amid coronavirus lockdown, when human was in home, nature was healing but all is not well. Owing to drastic impacts of climate change, some regions of country saw devastating flood due to way above average rains. On the other hand some of the states faced drought situation with little to no rains at all this year.
Rainfall pattern in India
A closer look at the country’s weather reports over the years shows rainfall pattern very much varying and inconsistent. While a number of districts of a state are receiving above average, others are having below average rainfall.
That’s why we have flood in one area of the state and drought in other parts of same state. The rain pattern in any state looks so weird that it’s easy to imagine the picture in the entire country. One half of India is facing drought and other is in flood, that too in many patterns.
The pattern of rain in the country was so inconsistent that some states faced flood and some regions saw drought. Rainfall has been 0.6% above the long period average (LPA) so far in 2020, with a significant variation between regions.
Met data on rainfall in 2020
By the end of July, around India’s 15% districts reported large excess rainfall or 60% above the LPA figure. And nearly 27% districts reported deficit monsoon. East and North East states have got 11.6% rain fall above the LPA. And North West regions registered 19.7% deficit rainfall, compared to the LPA.
The country’s 70% of 684 districts reported normal, excess or large excess rainfall. Most affected districts from above average rainfall were in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Assam.
As many as 185 districts received upto 59% or less than the LPA rainfall. These districts were mostly from the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Jharkhand and Jammu & Kashmir.
Projections on flood and drought in India
Heatwaves, floods and droughts have been projected for India in 2020s and next decades. Northern India regions have been warming more than their southern counterparts over the decades. Southern parts got warmer mainly during winters.
From 1901 to 2015, surface air temperature in India got increased by 0.6°C per year. Triggered by climate change and global warming, every decade from 1958 to 2015 has seen 7.4 hotter days and 3.1 hotter nights, as per weather department data.
According to projections of Ministry of Earth Sciences, the country must be ready to face tropical cyclones, thunderstorms, heat waves, floods and droughts over the decades till the end 21st century. And that will be if we don’t take mitigation measures very soon.
At the time of coronavirus outbreak, extreme weather conditions due to climate change have double hit the marginalized sections of the country. India must have to adopt solid measures at the soonest not only to provide best of relief to the affected but also to mitigate climate change effects.
