Rains batter Lucknow, Pune: Climate change is causing abrupt weather patterns in India

Over the past few days, several cities in India, Lucknow, Pune, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad among others, have witnessed torrential rains.

A 16-year-old girl’s speech on climate change at the United Nations General Assembly has shaken up a few feathers. Greta Thunberg’s passionate battle against world leaders has won her admirers and critics alike. However, in India, most people are still clueless about the idea of climate change, its reasons and effects.

What is, however, obvious is that monsoon patterns have changed. While there is deadly drought in some parts of the country, there is a prolonged monsoon in some other parts.

Over the past few days, several cities in India, Lucknow, Pune, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad among others, have witnessed torrential rains.

This has caused many to wonder why it is raining heavily in the last week of September, which is the fag end of the tropical monsoon season. There are predictions that the monsoon may continue into October as well.

It is important to know what triggers monsoon to understand why there are irregular patterns these days. The contrast in temperature between oceans and land masses reverses wind patterns and helps precipitation increase. And, that is what is called monsoon.

When climate change causes a change in temperature, the rainfall levels are altered. Monsoon becomes more irregular and unpredictable. While the entire world faces this, researchers find South Asia to be affected the most. They also predict that it is going to get worse in the coming future.

According to The Royal Meteorological Society, the seasonal rainfall is going to increase on the area-average basis. The Indian Ocean has been experiencing increased warming. It may be difficult to predict the exact nature of change as there are different patterns of rainfall change, as per climate simulations.

A study, conducted by Anoop Kumar Mishra, V. Nagaraju, Mohammed Rafiq and Sagarika Chandra at the Centre for Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics, Sathyabama University in Chennai, found that regional temperature, in addition to integrated wind fields and moisture supply, is likely to be responsible for changes in monsoon patterns across India.

The overall rainfall is expected to increase at least 5-10 percent while some climate models indicate it may be more. Even though it does not look like a big number, it is going to affect the stocks and commodities market, as well as the agriculture.

“So a 5-10% change on top could have significant impacts,” RMetS said.