Lok Sabha Question No. 105 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-12-15
Subject: Increase in Instances of Droughts and Heatwaves
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: SRINIVAS KESINENI, R. PARTHIPAN, HARI NARAYAN RAJBHAR, J. JAYASINGH THIYAGARAJ NATTERJEE

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.105

TO BE ANSWERED ON 15.12.2017

## Increase in Instances of Droughts and Heatwaves

## 105. SHRI KESINENI NANI:

SHRI R. PARTHIPAN:

SHRI HARINARAYAN RAJBHAR:

SHRI J. J. T. NATTERJEE:

Will  the  Minister  of  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND  CLIMATE  CHANGE  be  pleased  to state:

- (a) whether instances of droughts and heatwaves have increased in the country including Uttar Pradesh;
- (b) if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with its  impact  on  water resources,  agriculture and  human settlements;
- (c) whether the Government has conducted any study on the increasing fluctuations of droughts and heatwaves especially in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh and if so, the major findings of the study;
- (d) whether the total number of deaths because of heatwaves is likely to increase manifold by 2020 in the country and if so, the details thereof and the corrective measures taken in this regard; and
- (e) whether the UN Climate Change Conference held in Bonn, Germany outlined a roadmap for 'Talanoa  Dialogue'  to  assess  countries  progress  on  climate  change  and  if  so,  the  details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER  OF  STATE  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE (DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

(a) As per information provided by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, instances of heat wave have increased in many parts of the country, including Uttar Pradesh.

(b)&(c)    The  heat  wave  conditions  in  India  are  generally  experienced  during  the  period  from April to June. During this period, north, northwest, central, east India and northeast Peninsula (together called Core Heat Wave Zone (CHZ)) are most prone to heat wave / severe heat  wave  with  highest  frequency  during  May. The  CHZ  covers  states  of  Punjab,  Himachal Pradesh,  Uttarakhand,  Delhi,  Haryana,  Rajasthan,  Uttar  Pradesh,  Gujarat,  Madhya  Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West  Bengal,  Orissa  and Telangana  and  meteorological subdivisions  of  Marathwada,  Vidarbha,  Madhya  Maharashtra  and  coastal  Andhra  Pradesh.

Significant  increasing  trends  in  the  heat  wave  days  are  observed  in  many  parts  of  CHZ. Observed trends in heat wave over India are in tune with similar trends observed over various parts of the world.

According to a study entitled 'Climate Change and India: A 4x4 Assessment - A sectoral regional  analysis  for  2030s,'  published  in  2010;  droughts,  floods,  tropical  cyclones,  heavy precipitation events, hot extremes and heat waves are known to negatively impact agricultural production  and  farmer's  livelihood.  Climate  Change  is  also  likely  to  exacerbate  the  existing stresses  that  human  settlements  face.  National  Water  Mission  which  is  a  part  of  the  National Action Plan on Climate Change, identifies the threat to water resources in India due to climate change  in  terms  of  the  expected  decline  in  the  glaciers  and  snow  fields  in  the  Himalayas; increased drought like situations due to the overall decrease in the number of rainy days over a major part of the country.

(d)  During  unusually  hot  episodes,  deaths  from  different  causes  can  rise  with  the  elderly  at greater risk than others.  India has experienced human deaths during heat wave episodes of years like 1971, 1987, 1997, 2001 & 2002. However, there is no noticeable trend in the time series of deaths during 1971 to 2010. It has been observed that recent decade (2001-2010) has registered highest  number of  deaths due to heat  wave events as compared to previous 3 decades. As  an adaptive measure, India Meteorological Department in collaboration with local health departments have started heat action plans in many parts of the country to forewarn about the heat waves and advising action to be taken during such events. The Government has launched the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) in June 2008 to deal with the climate change and related issues. So far, 32 States and Union Territories (UTs) have also prepared State Action Plan on Climate Change in line with the objectives of the NAPCC and highlighting state specific issues relating to climate change.

(e)  The  Conference  of  Parties  (COP)  to  United  Nations  Framework  Convention  on  Climate Change at its 21 st Session at Paris in 2015 decided to convene a facilitative dialogue (termed as Talanoa  Dialogue  in  23 rd COP  held  at  Bonn,  Germany  in  November  2017)  among  Parties  in 2018 to take stock of the collective efforts of Parties in relation to progress towards the long-term temperature  goal  referred  in  the  Paris  Agreement  and  to  inform  the  preparation  of  nationally determined  contributions.  The  dialogue  will  be  structured  around  current  status,  desired  goals and means to achieve them.

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