Rising sea levels:7500 Km long, densely populated coast line - Flooding mangroves dotting coast lines - Coral bleaching - Extreme weather events - Glacial lake outflow floods affecting downstream village - Melting glaciers affecting water resources - Fall in agriculture productivity - Altered configuration and productivity of forest eco-systems
A Chronological report of Natural Calamities (extreme weather events) possibly due to Climate Change (Last four years)
2004 (Up to July)
Newspaper Reports over 1000 dead in severe floods in Bihar, Assam, parts of Haryana and Punjab and parts of Gujarat, while at the same time, Gujarat, Rajasthan, parts of Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh reeled under severe drought. Minor heat wave in parts of Rajasthan was also reported in May 2004, leaving about 50 dead.
2003
India and the sub-continent saw five of the 20 major natural calamities recorded worldwide in terms of terms of victims. (Source: Sigma 2003)
14.05.2003-0.6.06.2003: Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Bihar, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh: Heat Wave: 1392 dead
13.06.2003-9.10.2003: Assam, Bihar, West Bengal & Orissa (Bay of Bengal): Floods and landslides caused by monsoon rains: 650 dead and 10,00,000 homeless
03.07.2003-11.09.2003: Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat: Floods and landslides caused by monsoon rains: 373 dead, 9,00,000 homeless
27.08.2003-10.10.2003: Orissa: Severe floods: 1400 villages flooded: 360 dead: 12,00,000 homeless, estimated damage – USD 169 million.
27.08.2003-10.09.2003: Parts of North India and Bihar: Severe Floods: 367 dead: 4,00,000 homeless
15.12.2003-16.12.2003: Cyclonic storms with winds of up to 120 Km/h: 4403 houses destroyed, 13,000 severely damaged: 45 dead; total estimated damage: USD 28 Million.
From March 2003-June 2003
Severe Drought Conditions is most of North West, Major parts of North India, North-East India and parts of Andhra Pradesh: Telangana and Rayalseema Region, parts of Tamil Nadu: Crops to the tune of USD 25 Million destroyed, many starvation deaths reported.
2002
Floods: Severe floods affected northern and eastern states of the country. The northern and eastern parts of India, particularly Assam, Bihar, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Arunachal Pradesh faced severe floods. More than 10 million people have been affected and almost 300 people were killed due to floods, torrential rains and landslides. More than 20,000 houses have been damaged and the loss of public properties is estimated to INR 1,5 Billion (approximately US$ 30,772,391).
The flood situation in Assam was extremely severe, having hit 19 out of 23 districts. According to official estimates, nearly 3 million people were affected and 5,361 villages inundated. 76 people have died from waterborne diseases, while around 85 deaths were reported due to floods.
In addition to this, 2002 saw major of Indian states facing drought conditions and in states like Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, it was the 5th consecutive severe drought years. This region also witnessed a bad bout of heat wave, with over 250 people dead.
2001
This year saw one of the country’s worst natural calamities with over 15,000 dead in an earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale rocking parts of Gujarat. That year also saw severe floods in Eastern India, (Orissa), which left over 146 dead. The year 2001 also saw its share of drought in most part of North India and parts of South India.
How do these events relate to Climate Change?
Scientists believe that the fluctuating weather conditions in a country suggest that the country is reeling under climatic chaos. For more than a decade now, the country has been experiencing contrasting extreme weather conditions: from heat waves to cyclones, from droughts to floods. Orissa for instance is a state, which is a classic example of climate change events. In addition to the extreme weather conditions, there have been instances such as destruction of mangroves along the coast, a fairly steep fall in agriculture and forest productivity, coral breeching etc which have been found.
From the angle of contribution to climate change, India figures among the top 10 countries of the world with the highest greenhouse gas emissions, with the total CO2 emissions from India estimated to be 1,001,352 Gg. India also emits over 250 tonnes of carbon every year.
A Chronological report of Natural Calamities (extreme weather events) possibly due to Climate Change (Last four years)
2004 (Up to July)
Newspaper Reports over 1000 dead in severe floods in Bihar, Assam, parts of Haryana and Punjab and parts of Gujarat, while at the same time, Gujarat, Rajasthan, parts of Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh reeled under severe drought. Minor heat wave in parts of Rajasthan was also reported in May 2004, leaving about 50 dead.
2003
India and the sub-continent saw five of the 20 major natural calamities recorded worldwide in terms of terms of victims. (Source: Sigma 2003)
14.05.2003-0.6.06.2003: Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Bihar, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh: Heat Wave: 1392 dead
13.06.2003-9.10.2003: Assam, Bihar, West Bengal & Orissa (Bay of Bengal): Floods and landslides caused by monsoon rains: 650 dead and 10,00,000 homeless
03.07.2003-11.09.2003: Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat: Floods and landslides caused by monsoon rains: 373 dead, 9,00,000 homeless
27.08.2003-10.10.2003: Orissa: Severe floods: 1400 villages flooded: 360 dead: 12,00,000 homeless, estimated damage – USD 169 million.
27.08.2003-10.09.2003: Parts of North India and Bihar: Severe Floods: 367 dead: 4,00,000 homeless
15.12.2003-16.12.2003: Cyclonic storms with winds of up to 120 Km/h: 4403 houses destroyed, 13,000 severely damaged: 45 dead; total estimated damage: USD 28 Million.
From March 2003-June 2003
Severe Drought Conditions is most of North West, Major parts of North India, North-East India and parts of Andhra Pradesh: Telangana and Rayalseema Region, parts of Tamil Nadu: Crops to the tune of USD 25 Million destroyed, many starvation deaths reported.
2002
Floods: Severe floods affected northern and eastern states of the country. The northern and eastern parts of India, particularly Assam, Bihar, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Arunachal Pradesh faced severe floods. More than 10 million people have been affected and almost 300 people were killed due to floods, torrential rains and landslides. More than 20,000 houses have been damaged and the loss of public properties is estimated to INR 1,5 Billion (approximately US$ 30,772,391).
The flood situation in Assam was extremely severe, having hit 19 out of 23 districts. According to official estimates, nearly 3 million people were affected and 5,361 villages inundated. 76 people have died from waterborne diseases, while around 85 deaths were reported due to floods.
In addition to this, 2002 saw major of Indian states facing drought conditions and in states like Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, it was the 5th consecutive severe drought years. This region also witnessed a bad bout of heat wave, with over 250 people dead.
2001
This year saw one of the country’s worst natural calamities with over 15,000 dead in an earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale rocking parts of Gujarat. That year also saw severe floods in Eastern India, (Orissa), which left over 146 dead. The year 2001 also saw its share of drought in most part of North India and parts of South India.
How do these events relate to Climate Change?
Scientists believe that the fluctuating weather conditions in a country suggest that the country is reeling under climatic chaos. For more than a decade now, the country has been experiencing contrasting extreme weather conditions: from heat waves to cyclones, from droughts to floods. Orissa for instance is a state, which is a classic example of climate change events. In addition to the extreme weather conditions, there have been instances such as destruction of mangroves along the coast, a fairly steep fall in agriculture and forest productivity, coral breeching etc which have been found.
From the angle of contribution to climate change, India figures among the top 10 countries of the world with the highest greenhouse gas emissions, with the total CO2 emissions from India estimated to be 1,001,352 Gg. India also emits over 250 tonnes of carbon every year.
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