Carbon Copy The India Meteorological Department (IMD) this week delivered its first long-range forecast for this year’s monsoon. In terms of total rainfall observed over the season, the IMD expects this year’s monsoon to bring 96% of the Long Period Average (with a modelling error of +/-5%). The forecast, if it materialises, places monsoon performance within the “normal” range, albeit narrowly.  Despite the normal forecast, mid-way into summer 2023, India is jittery....

-Press release by World Meteorological Organization (WMO) dated 18 May 2022 Geneva, 18 May 2022 (WMO): Four key climate change indicators – greenhouse gas concentrations, sea level rise, ocean heat and ocean acidification – set new records in 2021. This is yet another clear sign that human activities are causing planetary scale changes on land, in the ocean, and in the atmosphere, with harmful and long-lasting ramifications for sustainable development and...

-Hindustan Times The European Space Agency’s website also showed land surface temperatures to be nearing 55 degrees Celsius over many parts of northwest India and crossing 60 degrees Celsius over several pockets. New Delhi: Surface land temperatures exceeded 60 degrees Celsius over some parts of northwest India, according to imagery captured by satellites on Saturday. Images of land surface captured by INSAT 3D, Copernicus Sentinel 3 and a NASA satellite indicated that...

-The Hindu The existing approach of dealing with surface water and groundwater independently has severe limitations The theme of this year’s World Water Day (March 22) was ‘Groundwater: Making the Invisible Visible’. The primary focus is to draw attention to the role of groundwater in water and sanitation systems, agriculture, industry, ecosystems, and climate change adaptation. Groundwater helps reduce the risk of temporary water shortage and caters to the needs of arid...

In the month of January this year, more than 100 homeless persons died (please click here and here to access) in Delhi-NCR due to cold wave like conditions. Although a Delhi-based non-government organisation (NGO) Centre for Holistic Development (CHD) made that claim, and therefore asked the Chief Minister of Delhi to make proper arrangements for the homeless poor during winters, the officials of the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB)...