IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN INDIA

April 08, 2026

IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN INDIA

Nikunja Bihari Sahu

Although Earth’s climate has always been changing due to various natural and geological factors, the change has been faster over the last century because of increasing human activities in the name of development. Deforestation, shifting cultivation, mining, industrialization and urbanization are some of the culprits responsible for this unprecedented and upward trend of climate change. An increased level of Carbon dioxide emission in our atmosphere because of various industrial processes and practices has played a key role in the change of climate on our planet. The result has been catastrophic and alarming! Increase in global temperature, sea level rise, changes in precipitation patterns, surge in the frequency of tropical storms etc. are some of the tangible impacts of climate change on the planet.

Threats

There is a rise in the average temperature of the Earth by 1 degree Celsius as compared to the pre-industrial times according to a recent IPCC report and, more alarmingly, this may reach 1.5 degrees Celsius mark by the year 2050. As a result of melting of polar ice cap, the sea level has been steadily rising posing a serious threat of submergence and coastal erosion to the low-lying countries of the world like Bangladesh and Mauritius . The rainfall pattern has changed drastically leading to unpredictability of the monsoon and desertification of vast tracts of fertile land. Major economical sectors like agriculture, forestry and fisheries have been severely strained affecting the lives and livelihoods of people around the world. It has also pushed many plant and animal species to the brink of extinction. It has also left its imprints in the form of intensified heat wave conditions, soil salinity, degradation of fertile lands, habitat destruction, reduction of crop yield and loss of valuable forest produce. The various developing countries around the world, in particular, will bear the major brunt of the impact of the climate change due to their geographic location and socio-economic conditions.

Indian Scenario

In India, climate change has been affecting several climate sensitive sectors like agriculture, forestry, fisheries and animal husbandry on which nearly two-thirds of the population depend directly for subsistence. It is estimated that more than 50 million people will be affected by coastal flooding as a result of sea level rise. About 30% of the land will be affected by drought as many states including Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Bihar etc will be reeling under severe water crisis and drought like conditions. Various regions in Mumbai and Kerala will be under water logging due to unplanned urban architecture and poor drainage system. Nearly 142 districts located in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu will be affected by soil salinity or alkalinity.

With India close to the equator, the sub-continent would see much higher rises in sea levels than countries in the upper latitudes. Sea-level rise and storm surges would lead to saltwater intrusion in the coastal areas impacting agriculture, degrading groundwater quality, contaminating drinking water sources and possibly causing a rise in diarrhoea cases and cholera outbreaks, as the cholera bacterium survives longer in saline water. Cities like Mumbai and Kolkata, being two of the densely populated ones, will be mostly affected due to sea level rise and coastal flooding. Mumbai has the world’s largest population exposed to coastal flooding with large parts of the city built on reclaimed lands below the high-tide mark. Rapid and unplanned urbanization in the city further increases the risks of sea water intrusion.

Most Himalayan glaciers, where a substantial part of the moisture is supplied by the summer monsoon, have been retreating over the past centuries. Melting of glaciers and the loss of snow cover over the Himalayas are expected to threaten the stability of northern India’s primarily glacier-fed rivers, particularly the Indus and the Brahmaputra, although the Ganges will be spared because of its high annual rainfall downstream during the monsoon season. The Indus and Brahmaputra are expected to see increased flows in spring when the snows melt and flows reducing subsequently in late spring and summer. Alterations in the flows of the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra rivers could significantly impact irrigation, affecting the food production in their basins as well as the livelihoods of millions of people (209 million in the Indus basin, 478 million in the Ganges basin, and 62 million in the Brahmaputra basin as estimated in the year 2005). Also, rapid deforestation in the Himalayas will pose a serious threat to the ecological balance of the Indo- Gangetic plains.

There are visible vegetation shift patterns in the North-east, Himachal Pradesh and the Western Ghats along with signs of biodiversity loss. Several animals including Yak, House sparrows, Indian bustards, Vultures etc. and plant species including Red Sandalwood, Musli, Malabar mahogany, Ebony etc are becoming endangered and are on the brink of extinction. Various crops like rice, wheat, maize, millets and pulses will be affected depriving farmers of their prime source of income.

The 2013 Uttarakh and floods and landslides, the 2015 Chennai flood and the 2016 drought conditions in many parts of the country are examples of some of the expressions of nature’s fury that can be primarily linked to climate change. Extreme events like droughts, floods and heat wave conditions are the most visible and immediate impacts of climate change in our country. In 2018-19, as many as 2400 Indians lost their lives to extreme weather events and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicts that the events will be more severe in both frequency and intensity in coming days. According to the World Bank, central districts in India are the most vulnerable to climate change because they lack the infrastructure and are largely agrarian having the maximum number of farmer suicide cases in recent years. In these districts, according to the World Bank projection, the per capita GDP could shrink by nearly 10% by 2050 as a result of climate change consequences.

Time To Act

Stringent laws are required to be enacted at global and regional levels to thwart the process of climate change. The Paris Agreement signed in 2015 requires that all nations join hands to reduce their carbon emission footprints so as to slow down the pace of climate change. At individual level, our mantra should be ‘Think Globally and Act locally’. We should follow eco-friendly and energy saving practices in our daily life. We should conserve our resources (including water) and try to explore non-conventional and renewable sources of energy. Investments in R&D sector for the development of drought-resistant crops can help reduce some of the negative impacts of climate change. Building codes will need to be strictly enforced and proper urban planning will need to be prepared for mitigating climate-related disasters. Various local groups and students in particular should come forward to sensitize common people about the impact of climate change in their lives and the action they have to take to lessen the impacts for a sustainable future.

Education Officer

Regional Science Centre

Shyamla Hills

Bhopal

Phone: 8018708858