THE COLD is literally biting us, but we have no place to go,” said Soni, shivering despite sitting around a bonfire under the Sarai Kale Khan flyover in Delhi on New Year’s Eve. Her family of eight along with millions of other homeless people in north and northwest India were left freezing in the cold this December as the region experienced one of the longest and most brutal cold waves in living memory (see ‘What caused the unusual freeze’). Over 30 people are reported to have died in Uttar Pradesh due to the extreme event that broke several records.
On December 28, Nagaland received a surprise snowfall after over 40 years and Bihar’s capital city Patna recorded its second coldest day in the decade. Two days later, Delhi recorded its coldest December day when the maximum temperature dipped to 9.4oC. It was 11.4oC below normal. On the last day of the year, Nowgong and Tikamgarh towns of Madhya Pradesh too recorded coldest day temperatures, which were 15.2°C below normal.
With the current cold spell, the number of cold wave incidents this winter is expected to go up in the country, which is already experiencing frequent cold waves in recent years. In 2017, the country recorded 276 cold wave incidents, the highest since 1980 (see ‘A shivering point’). It was 200 the next year, as per Envistats 2019 report, released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. The two years account for nearly half of all the cold wave events recorded between 1980 and 2018. This is a cause for concern as cold wave has lethal impact on human health. During the 39 years till 2018, cold waves have killed 8,169 people. This is almost 200 deaths a year. Another worrying trend is that in 22 of the 39 years, cold waves have killed more people than heat waves in India.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 16, 2020-Ausgabe von Down To Earth.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 16, 2020-Ausgabe von Down To Earth.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Trade On Emissions
EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, a tariff on imports, is designed to protect European industries in the guise of climate action.
'The project will facilitate physical and cultural decimation of indigenous people'
The Great Nicobar Project has all the hallmarks of a disaster-seismic, ecological, human. Why did it get the go-ahead?
TASTE IT RED
Popularity of Karnataka's red jackfruit shows how biodiversity can be conserved by ensuring that communities benefit from it
MANY MYTHS OF CHIPKO
Misconceptions about the Chipko movement have overshadowed its true objectives.
The politics and economics of mpox
Africa's mpox epidemic stems from delayed responses, neglect of its health risks and the stark vaccine apartheid
Emerging risks
Even as the world gets set to eliminate substances threatening the ozone layer, climate change and space advancement pose new challenges.
JOINING THE CARBON CLUB
India's carbon market will soon be a reality, but will it fulfil its aim of reducing emissions? A report by PARTH KUMAR and MANAS AGRAWAL
Turn a new leaf
Scientists join hands to predict climate future of India's tropical forests
Festering troubles
The Democratic Republic of Congo struggles to contain mpox amid vaccine delays, conflict and fragile healthcare.
India sees unusual monsoon patterns
THE 2024 southwest monsoon has, between June 1 and September 1, led to excess rainfall in western and southern states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, while others like Nagaland, Manipur and Punjab recorded a deficit.