However, the impact spread wider, affecting all 36 states and Union Territories (UTs) compared to 34 last year
During the monsoon season, India recorded 115 days of heavy rains, floods, and landslides, a decrease of seven days from the same period last year. Photo: Rohit Parashar For a free download of the report, click here
India grappled with extreme weather events for 235 days out of the first nine months of 2023, a slight decrease from the 241 days recorded in the same period last year, as per India 2023: An assessment of extreme weather events brought out by Down To Earth (DTE) magazine and the Centre for Science and Environment.
However, the impact spread wider, affecting all 36 states and Union Territories (UTs) compared to 34 last year. These events resulted in 2,923 fatalities, up from 2,755 in 2022, according to the DTE-CSE report, which is now in its second year.
Cropland damage remained relatively similar at 1.84 million hectares, but the impact spread across 20 states and UTs this year compared to 15 last year. The northwest states of Punjab and Haryana were particularly affected by crop losses. The pattern of extreme weather events varied significantly across the seasons.
The winter season, typically associated with cold waves and cold days, was unusually warm this year. Consequently, India recorded extreme weather events on 28 days, 10 fewer than the same period last year.
The first two months of the year saw 21 days of cold days and cold waves, down nine days from the same period in 2022. There were also lightning and storms (5 days), snowfall (2 days), and heavy rains, floods, and landslides (1 day).
While human deaths associated with extreme weather events decreased from 21 to 8, the area of crop damage increased 12-fold, from 0.03 million hectares in 2022 to 0.39 million hectares this year.
The pre-monsoon season, which recorded historically severe heatwaves last year, remained slightly cooler than normal due to the frequent occurrence of hailstorms in most states and UTs.
India experienced a surge in extreme weather events during this pre-monsoon season, with 85 days of extreme weather compared to 81 days in 2022. This increase was driven by a significant rise in lightning and storms (primarily hailstorms), which occurred on 79 days this year, nearly double the 42 days recorded last year.
Heatwaves, on the other hand, were less frequent, recorded on 28 days this year compared to 51 days last year. Heavy rainfall, floods, and landslides occurred on 16 days.
Despite a marginal rise in human deaths from 318 to 321, the season was marked by a devastating blow to agriculture. The area under crop damage saw a 64-fold increase from 0.01 million hectares last year to 0.64 million hectares this year.
Despite experiencing a near-normal monsoon season, India faced oscillating patterns of dry and wet spells. As a result, the country recorded extreme weather events on all 122 days, the same as last year.
During the season, India recorded 115 days of heavy rains, floods, and landslides, a decrease of seven days from the same period last year. There were also lightning and storms (92 days), heatwaves (21 days), cloudbursts (8 days), snowfall (3 days), and a cyclone (1 day).
While the number of human deaths associated with extreme weather events increased to 2,594 from 2,431 in 2022, the area under crop damage recorded a decrease from 1.8 million hectares in 2022 to 0.81 million hectares this year.
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