New Delhi – Extreme weather events caused by climate change are having a bad effect on life. The situation is such that in the first nine months of the current year, 93 percent i.e. 255 out of 274 days faced heat and cold winds, cyclones, lightning, heavy rainfall, floods and landslides.
Due to these incidents, 3,238 people lost their lives, 32 lakh hectares of crops were affected. 2,35,862 houses and buildings were destroyed, while about 9,457 animals were killed. This horrific picture has come to the fore in the report released on Friday by Sunita Narayan, Director General of the Center for Science and Environment (CSE).
India had the ninth driest month
According to the ‘State of Extreme Weather Report’, extreme weather events have had a more serious impact in 2024 than in 2022 and 2023. 2024 also set several climate records. January was India’s ninth driest month since 1901. In February, the country recorded its second-highest minimum temperature in 123 years. May recorded the fourth-highest average temperature and July, August and September all recorded their highest minimum temperatures since 1901.
Sunita Narain said, ‘Events that used to happen once a century are now happening every five years or less.’ The last nine months have seen all kinds of events from lightning and storms to 32 states and the resulting continuous monsoon rains, which led to floods in various areas, killing 1,021 people.
Heavy rainfall, floods and landslides in Assam for 122 days
Heavy rainfall, floods and landslides occurred in Assam alone for 122 days, submerging large parts of the state and devastating communities. Floods across the country killed 1,376 people. Madhya Pradesh experienced extreme weather every second day, the highest in the country. Kerala recorded the highest number of deaths at 550, followed by Madhya Pradesh (353) and Assam (256).
Central region had highest number of deaths at 1,001
Andhra Pradesh had highest number of houses destroyed (85,806), while Maharashtra, which witnessed extreme weather events on 142 days, suffered more than 60 per cent of the crop area affected across the country, followed by Madhya Pradesh (25,170 hectares). Central region had highest number of deaths at 1,001.
