Under pressure: How climate change is impacting Indian cities
3 months, 1 week ago

Under pressure: How climate change is impacting Indian cities

Live Mint  

New Delhi and the National Capital Region is beset by problems, with the unbearable amounts of atmospheric pollution being the most acute. Urban Heat: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru This places additional pressures on cities, especially since India is one of the fastest urbanizing countries in the world. Sea level rise and extreme storms: Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai Although our understanding of climate change impacts is formed purely by what we experience on land, the real story of global heating lies in the ocean. Not only does this spell trouble for coastal cities in the long term, even in the short term, higher sea levels can spell disaster when cyclones make landfall. If the time a cyclone makes landfall coincides with high tide and higher sea levels, storm surges would be higher and lead to greater flooding.

Global Climate Change Bengaluru Delhi Mumbai Kolkata Climate Chennai Ocean Heat Ncr Sea Sea Level Rise Indian Cities Impacting India  impacting  india  mumbai  pressure  indian  cities  change  ocean  delhi  global  climate  sea  kolkata  heat

History of this topic

Under pressure: How Donald Trump's attacks on US climate agencies affect India
1 week ago

Under pressure: How Donald Trump's attacks on US climate agencies affect India

Live Mint  

Dear reader, One of the first things that Donald Trump did when he became president was to withdraw the US from the 2015 Paris climate agreement. In fact, US climate non-profit Climate Central’s Climate Shift Index has attributed the above normal temperatures in places like Goa and Mumbai to be the direct result of human-caused climate change. Published in December …

Bengaluru to be hotter than Delhi: Could 2025 be the hottest year on Earth?
1 week, 6 days ago

Bengaluru to be hotter than Delhi: Could 2025 be the hottest year on Earth?

India Today  

Delhi experienced that warmest February in 74 years in 2025 and India is likely to experience a warmer than usual March with a good number of heat wave days. As temperatures continue to break records, climate experts warn that 2025 could be even hotter than 2024, marking yet another year of extreme climate shifts. Data from the Copernicus Climate Change …

Experts come up with a slew of strategies to keep the city cool
Trending News
2 weeks, 6 days ago

Experts come up with a slew of strategies to keep the city cool

The Hindu  

With each passing year, Chennai residents are increasingly concerned about the unbearable summer followed by large-scale flooding. At the recent Tamil Nadu Climate Summit 3.0, former IAS officer V. Thiruppugazh, the head of the Advisory Committee on Mitigation and Management of Flood Risk in the Chennai Metropolitan Area, said Chennai was projected to experience a temperature increase of 1.9 degrees …

India 7th most vulnerable country to climate change: Economic Survey
1 month, 2 weeks ago

India 7th most vulnerable country to climate change: Economic Survey

India Today  

As global environmental agencies declared 2024 the hottest year on record and countries faced extreme weather events, India is no different. The Economic Survey tabled in Parliament identified India as the seventh most vulnerable country to climate change, highlighting the country's susceptibility to extreme weather events, slow onset phenomena like sea-level rise, biodiversity loss, and growing water insecurity. Given India's …

A liveable planet must remain on the agenda
1 month, 3 weeks ago

A liveable planet must remain on the agenda

Live Mint  

“Time is what keeps everything from happening at once," noted author Ray Cummings. However, with landslides and floods hitting Kerala, Rajasthan facing scorching heat and water scarcity, urban flooding in Bengaluru, severe cold waves in Northern India, Himachal Pradesh’s prolonged monsoon season lifting its dengue case count, forest fires devastating Uttarakhand, and India experiencing its hottest October in 123 years …

COP29 and reducing climate leadership: What India can do
3 months, 3 weeks ago

COP29 and reducing climate leadership: What India can do

Hindustan Times  

The Conference of Parties 29 has seen a lacklustre attendance with heads of State from major emitters including China, United States, South Africa, Germany and Canada not in attendance. India must take a nuanced stance advocating for continued resource transfers from the North to bolster India’s domestic capacity to become a crucial partner in achieving global climate goals. India would …

India should rely on itself to tackle the environmental challenges it must
4 months, 1 week ago

India should rely on itself to tackle the environmental challenges it must

Live Mint  

That changing the behaviour of populations is a nigh-impossible task was visible, once again, during Diwali. When political leaders themselves ignore a key institution, posit environmental action as anti-religious and undermine established scientific research on the deadly effects of a ‘temporary’ surge in pollution levels, it is not surprising that profit-seeking cracker sellers and people—who are healthy and prioritize enjoyment, …

Heat, Health and Economic Toll Escalate in India as Climate Crisis Grips the Nation
4 months, 2 weeks ago

Heat, Health and Economic Toll Escalate in India as Climate Crisis Grips the Nation

New Indian Express  

India is grappling with the harsh realities of climate change, with heat, health, and economic impacts escalating. The country is facing a 50% increase in potential labour hours lost to extreme heat since the 1990s, with economic losses valued at $141 billion in 2023. Rising sea levels threaten around 18.1 million Indians living less than a metre above sea level, …

‘International Cooperation is Required to Fight Heatwaves’: Climate Scientist Indu. K. Murthy
7 months, 2 weeks ago

‘International Cooperation is Required to Fight Heatwaves’: Climate Scientist Indu. K. Murthy

The Hindu  

Published : Jul 23, 2024 17:21 IST - 7 MINS READ State governments and the Centre were caught on the back foot as they scrambled to implement heat action plans this summer as parts of India reeled under heatwaves, which killed 58 people in New Delhi alone. Governments must support research and innovation in heat resilience technologies and strategies, given …

Climate turbulence ahead: Time to fasten our seatbelts
9 months ago

Climate turbulence ahead: Time to fasten our seatbelts

Live Mint  

For most well-off urban residents, the effects of climate change have mostly been viewed from afar as a problem confronted by villagers. Among its disturbing findings was that “cities are not cooling down at night at the rate they used to" 20 years ago, and that “all cities have registered significant increase in their built heat island effect," a reference …

Climate crisis made May heatwaves 1.5C hotter in India, study says
9 months, 1 week ago

Climate crisis made May heatwaves 1.5C hotter in India, study says

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The unprecedented heatwaves that scorched northern and central India in May were made 1.5 degrees …

Battling urban heat islands in India
9 months, 1 week ago

Battling urban heat islands in India

Hindustan Times  

Temperatures in the Capital have surged to a record-breaking 52.3 degrees Celsius recently, according to the India Meteorological Department. Heatwave {{^userSubscribed}} {{/userSubscribed}} {{^userSubscribed}} {{/userSubscribed}} This alarming statistic underscores a growing issue: The urban heat island effect, a phenomenon where urban areas experience significantly higher temperatures than their rural counterparts. {{^usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} Green spaces play a crucial role in mitigating the …

India’s deadly heat kills over 200 people, including dozens of poll workers as elections wrap up
9 months, 1 week ago

India’s deadly heat kills over 200 people, including dozens of poll workers as elections wrap up

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Over 200 people, including dozens of workers on election duty, have died in the last …

India may have recorded its hottest temperatures ever as Delhi faces extreme heatwave
9 months, 2 weeks ago

India may have recorded its hottest temperatures ever as Delhi faces extreme heatwave

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Heatwaves are clearly the single largest threat to India’s well being today.” Aarti Khosla, director of Climate Trends These …

Getting ready for heatwaves
9 months, 2 weeks ago

Getting ready for heatwaves

Hindustan Times  

A crushing heatwave that began more than a week ago has become unbearable since Monday. In Delhi, power consumption surpassed records and desperate families mobbed water tankers after their taps ran dry. A 40-year-old labourer who lived in a room with no air cooling died at a hospital during the week and the administration imposed fines on wasteful use of …

Need to hasten climate action as temps break records
9 months, 2 weeks ago

Need to hasten climate action as temps break records

New Indian Express  

The unprecedented rise in temperatures across north India—especially in Delhi, which recorded a historical high of 52.9°C on Wednesday—has given a glimpse into the dire future caused by human-induced climate change. The increased emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide produced by human activities are creating the effect of trapping heat and raising temperatures on …

India reports first heat-related death this year
9 months, 2 weeks ago

India reports first heat-related death this year

Al Jazeera  

A labourer dies of a heatstroke in New Delhi as parts of the city record 52.9 degrees Celsius. Extreme temperatures across India are having their worst impact in the country’s teeming megacities, experts have warned, as its capital reported its first death this season due to record-breaking heat. Due to the rising temperature, New Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena …

Climate change impacts millions in India. But as the country votes, some politicians skirt the issue
9 months, 3 weeks ago

Climate change impacts millions in India. But as the country votes, some politicians skirt the issue

Associated Press  

BEED, India — Almost 970 million Indians are voting in general elections amid sweltering heat and unpredictable weather extremes exacerbated by human-caused climate change, leading to loss of livelihood, forced migration and increasingly difficult living conditions for millions across the country. Issues related to religion, caste and employment still determine most Indians’ political preferences, but Koll said that at local …

Sea also rises: On understanding the Indian Ocean’s local impact
10 months, 2 weeks ago

Sea also rises: On understanding the Indian Ocean’s local impact

The Hindu  

India may be roiling in heatwaves but the possibility of a munificent monsoon, as envisaged by the India Meteorological Department, may be contributing to some psychological relief. A recent study led by scientists at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, and other international institutions has forecast — based on expected global carbon emission trends — the likely impact on …

Chennai floods a call for integrating climate action in masterplans
1 year, 2 months ago

Chennai floods a call for integrating climate action in masterplans

Hindustan Times  

Cyclone Michaung struck Chennai on December 4, killing many people and marooning tens of thousands of residents. The city is now planning to integrate the climate action plan into its third masterplan, which will come into force by 2026 and guide the development of the Chennai Metropolitan Area for the next 20 years. In Chennai for example, the Chennai Metropolitan …

The silent migration from India’s cyclone capital
1 year, 3 months ago

The silent migration from India’s cyclone capital

Live Mint  

Pakhiralay, Sunderbans: Kaushala Mondal and her husband once nursed a dream—that some day, they would build a pakka house in their village, Pakhiralay, in the Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangroves that span the twin districts of North and South 24 Parganas in West Bengal. “When I leave my children to return to work, they are in tears," says Kaushala. As …

With El Nino around, the heat is on
1 year, 4 months ago

With El Nino around, the heat is on

Hindustan Times  

This year, forest fires turned swathes of hills and forests to ash in Europe, virtually wiping out an entire town as all past temperature records fell. El Nino conditions, a phenomenon where the equatorial Pacific waters become warmer than usual, are partly to blame for the trend, and it is just getting stronger, making next year likely to become even …

Can we cool our cities down?
1 year, 5 months ago

Can we cool our cities down?

The Hindu  

Given the country’s hot weather conditions almost all the year, besides increasing urbanisation, and the worsening effects of climate change, managing ambient heat in Indian cities is a challenge. Urban areas are particularly vulnerable to the ‘urban heat island’ effect, where cities experience higher temperatures because of large areas without plantation and shade, and the ‘urban canyon effect’ due to …

Cost of Climate Change Is Rising In India, And We Need To Act Now
1 year, 8 months ago

Cost of Climate Change Is Rising In India, And We Need To Act Now

ABP News  

With torrential rains hitting north India, the states of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand and the UTs of Delhi and Chandigarh received record-breaking precipitation. Many even labelled, albeit incorrectly, this extraordinary precipitation as ‘heavy monsoon rains’, whereas, this was an extreme weather event triggered by climate change, with almost a monsoon month’s rainfall falling in 1-3 days. Increase In Numbers …

To save flooded cities, recast urban planning
1 year, 8 months ago

To save flooded cities, recast urban planning

Hindustan Times  

Excessive rain and severe waterlogging in the Delhi national capital region over the weekend put the focus back on infrastructure failures in Indian metropolises. Urban planning has become the focus of persistent public lament in recent years; in unpacking the nature of planning, can we find the seeds of a new planning imagination to address the crises cities face? Furthermore, …

CLIMATE CHANGE | India’s sweltering heatwaves cause unbearable suffering
1 year, 9 months ago

CLIMATE CHANGE | India’s sweltering heatwaves cause unbearable suffering

The Hindu  

Published : May 31, 2023 14:43 IST - 4 MINS READ Blistering heat has taken a toll on people’s lives in large parts of India as temperatures went as high as 45 degrees Celsius in recent weeks. If current warming trends continue, temperatures will rise so high that the human body’s ability to maintain a stable internal temperature and expel …

‘Climate crisis not only urban, but also rural and developmental’, says Aromar Revi, IIHS director
1 year, 9 months ago

‘Climate crisis not only urban, but also rural and developmental’, says Aromar Revi, IIHS director

Hindustan Times  

As India’s already warm cities get warmer, the real danger of the climate crisis lurks in the form of a water and food crises for the country’s large urban population, and experts warn that only a systemic transformation can reverse the grim trajectory that we find ourselves on. Aromar Revi, director of the Bengaluru-based Indian Institute for Human Settlements and …

Heatwaves are preventing India from achieving development goals: Study
1 year, 10 months ago

Heatwaves are preventing India from achieving development goals: Study

Live Mint  

Heatwaves in India are not only affecting the health of the people but also impacting the economic and developmental goals of the country. A new study has revealed the impact of scorching heat on India's agriculture, economy, and public health. The study informs that India is currently “facing a collision of multiple, cumulative climate hazards” resulting in extreme weather events …

90% of India vulnerable to heatwave impact, says study
1 year, 10 months ago

90% of India vulnerable to heatwave impact, says study

The Hindu  

Nearly 90% of India is in a “danger zone” from heatwave impact and almost all of Delhi is at the risk of severe heatwave impacts, which is not reflected in its recent state action plan for climate change, says a study published on April 19 in the peer-reviewed PLOS Climate. The study, by Ramit Debnath at the University of Cambridge, …

India’s heat is underestimated, harming progress, study says
1 year, 10 months ago

India’s heat is underestimated, harming progress, study says

Associated Press  

BENGALURU, India — The full extent of the damage from India’s sizzling heat that’s causing more deaths, illnesses, school shutdowns and crop failures is underestimated by lawmakers and officials in the country and slowing the nation’s development, a study Wednesday said. Extreme heat is placing 80% of India’s 1.4 billion population in danger but assessments of how vulnerable the country …

UP, Bihar among World's top 50 regions facing climate risk: Report
2 years ago

UP, Bihar among World's top 50 regions facing climate risk: Report

Hindustan Times  

Nine states in India, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Punjab, are among the world's top 50 regions at risk of damage to the built environment due to climate change hazards, according to a new report published on Monday. Read here: NGT directs authorities to demolish hotel constructed in Sundarbans Cross Dependency Initiative, part of a group of companies committed …

India needs a new urban deal
2 years, 6 months ago

India needs a new urban deal

Hindustan Times  

The future of Indian cities has played out in horrifying detail over the past 48 hours. The toxic combination of poor urban planning, rampant flouting of rules, lax governance hindered further by red tape, and intensifying effects of the climate crisis has brought our cities to their knees. But repeated flooding and increasing vagaries in climate patterns mean that the …

Heat Waves, Droughts And Floods: No More A Developing World Problem
2 years, 6 months ago

Heat Waves, Droughts And Floods: No More A Developing World Problem

News 18  

Last month, temperature levels crossed 40 degrees in Great Britain. Backing out from Shared responsibility It is only in recent times that the global north has started to see such direct and massive impacts of climate change. Effects of Climate Change Almost the entire globe has been seeing an increase in hotter days and heat waves. Although India has not …

New Study Warns of Dangerously High Heat Levels in India as Global Emissions Rise in Coming Decades
2 years, 6 months ago

New Study Warns of Dangerously High Heat Levels in India as Global Emissions Rise in Coming Decades

News 18  

Many people living in tropical regions like India are likely to be exposed to “dangerously high” heat levels during most days of each typical year in the coming decades, warn scientists in their latest study on impact of climate change. “In the tropics and subtropics, where the dangerous Heat Index threshold was typically exceeded on less than 15% of the …

India’s climate imperative
2 years, 7 months ago

India’s climate imperative

The Hindu  

In the absence of COVID-19, climate change-induced disasters would have been India’s biggest red alert in recent years. The heatwave that scorched Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and New Delhi this year; torrential downpours in south India in 2021; and the super cyclone Amphan that battered West Bengal and Odisha in 2020 are symbols of man-made climate change. Labour losses from …

Policies and People | Urban farming improves climate resilience
2 years, 8 months ago

Policies and People | Urban farming improves climate resilience

Hindustan Times  

In a climate-sensitive move, the Delhi Cabinet on Wednesday approved the "Smart Urban Farming" initiative to popularise rooftop farming in the city. A robust urban farming structure can reduce the vulnerability of poor people and also reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by producing fresh food close to the city. A World Bank report says urban agriculture can also …

The threat of extreme weather to health, productivity and livelihoods of outdoor
2 years, 9 months ago

The threat of extreme weather to health, productivity and livelihoods of outdoor

Live Mint  

GUWAHATI/NEW DELHI : Vimal Sahu had seen enough Delhi summers to tell that it was not just another hot May day. Too hot to work For outdoor workers in India’s hottest regions, rising extreme heat will make work increasingly difficult, several studies have warned, shaving off billion hours of labour and productivity. A McKinsey report of 2020 estimates that heat-exposed …

Climate Change: Prolonged heat, no monsoon relief in sight
2 years, 9 months ago

Climate Change: Prolonged heat, no monsoon relief in sight

Live Mint  

What a difference a few days can make. As a study from the international group of climate scientists, World Weather Attribution, pointed out on 23 May, climate change has made such heatwaves 30 times more likely. What the WWA study, Climate Change Made Devastating Early Heat In India And Pakistan 30 Times More Likely, points out is that below average …

DC Edit | Save cities from eco disasters
2 years, 9 months ago

DC Edit | Save cities from eco disasters

Deccan Chronicle  

Most cities across the world have long ceased to be environmentally sustainable. They may bear the bulk of economic burden of a country or region, allowing for millions of people to eke out a livelihood, or even make a good life for themselves, crucially paying the lion’s share of the taxes that financially sustain the spending of nations and states, …

More than 1.2bn people face potentially fatal health risks from extreme heat, report says
2 years, 9 months ago

More than 1.2bn people face potentially fatal health risks from extreme heat, report says

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy More than 1.2bn urban and rural poor people are at high risk from extreme heat …

How India’s heatwave is only set to get worse
2 years, 10 months ago

How India’s heatwave is only set to get worse

The Independent  

Naresh Ahirwar doesn’t stop working when the midday sun beats down on his construction site on the outskirts of Delhi, amid the sustained heatwave conditions that have afflicted northern India for well over a month. “Our heat action plans must ensure adaptation measures like public cooling areas, ensuring uninterrupted electricity, access to safe drinking water, and changing the work hours …

Climate change experts say India's heatwave offers the world a terrifying glimpse into the future
2 years, 10 months ago

Climate change experts say India's heatwave offers the world a terrifying glimpse into the future

ABC  

Every year, more than a billion people sweat their way through India and Pakistan's dreaded heatwaves, which usually begin in late May. "There is overwhelming evidence in the scientific community that climate change is playing a role in causing temperature extremes to be more frequent, more intense and more elongated," Professor Mondal said. Power grid overloaded amid sweltering heat The …

Why we need to talk about climate change everyday
2 years, 10 months ago

Why we need to talk about climate change everyday

Live Mint  

There isn’t much climate change denial in India, for which we must give thanks. This is a heatwave that’s certainly been exacerbated by rising global temperatures—the world is, after all, 1.2 degree Celsius hotter and India is nearly 1 degree Celsius hotter than in pre-industrial times. And particularly in the coastal areas and in the Indo-Gangetic plains, the humidity also …

Mumbai net zero: What the pledge means for city-dwellers threatened by impending sea level rise
2 years, 11 months ago

Mumbai net zero: What the pledge means for city-dwellers threatened by impending sea level rise

The Independent  

Ranjana Kumari, 51, says her tin roof in the crowded Oshiwara area of suburban Mumbai has been trapping heat inside her shack since the mercury soared to 40C in the middle of March – unseasonably early in the year – making her feel like she is “living in a chimney”. “There is a vicious cycle of extreme weather events and …

Policies and People | Are marine heatwaves affecting India’s monsoons?
2 years, 11 months ago

Policies and People | Are marine heatwaves affecting India’s monsoons?

Hindustan Times  

A few months ago, Vidhi Bubna, a 23-year-old scuba diver and founder, Coral Warriors, got in touch with me because of our mutual interest in the climate crisis, oceans, and biodiversity. Speaking to 60-odd environment journalists at the Centre for Science and Environment’s Anil Agarwal Dialogue, Koll, who led the study, said that his team has seen a significant increase …

Indian Ocean hit by six heatwaves in 2021, temp rising by 0.15 degrees Celcius per decade
2 years, 11 months ago

Indian Ocean hit by six heatwaves in 2021, temp rising by 0.15 degrees Celcius per decade

India Today  

With the effects of climate change becoming more and more visible, the marine world is set to face the brunt of ocean warming. The western Indian Ocean heatwaves in 2021 were in the top four years in terms of the number of events," the minister said in his reply. The minister informed that the western Indian Ocean region experienced a …

IPCC’s new report sounds alarm bells for Mumbai
3 years ago

IPCC’s new report sounds alarm bells for Mumbai

Hindustan Times  

The new report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on Monday features multiple warning signs for Mumbai, which is one of the world’s most vulnerable cities with respect to climate change. HT Photo The report titled IPCC 6th Assessment Report Working Group II said Mumbai ranks second among the 20 largest coastal cities which are scheduled to incur …

India stares at water scarcity, extreme heat stress: Report
3 years ago

India stares at water scarcity, extreme heat stress: Report

Hindustan Times  

The Ganga, Indus, Amu Darya and other river basins in Asia could face severe water scarcity by 2050 due to climate crisis and related impacts that act as stress multipliers, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned on Monday. Overall, South Asia is among the most vulnerable regions in the world when it comes to severe climate impacts due to …

'Rare marine heatwaves impacting monsoon by reducing rainfall over central Indian subcontinent', says study
3 years, 1 month ago

'Rare marine heatwaves impacting monsoon by reducing rainfall over central Indian subcontinent', says study

Firstpost  

This is the first time that a study has demonstrated a close link between marine heatwaves and atmospheric circulation and rainfall, the researchers claimed Mumbai: Marine heatwaves are on a rise in the Indian Ocean, leaving an impact on the Indian monsoon rainfall, according to a study by researchers of the Pune-based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology. These events cause …

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