Short affidavit on behalf of the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board (RSPCB) in terms of the National Green Tribunal order dated January 22, 2025. The application was registered suo motu by the NGT on the basis of a news item titled "Toxic kilns pollution Aravallis; wildlife and locals suffer" appearing …
The World Health Organization (WHO) has calculated that by 2020 human-triggered climate change could kill 300,000 people worldwide every year. By 2000, in fact, climate change was already responsible for 150,000 excess deaths annually
The concept of an interannually varying Indian summer monsoon season is introduced here, considering that the duration of the primary driving of the Indian monsoon - the large-scale meridional gradient of the deep tropospheric heat source - may vary from one year to another. Onset (withdrawal) is defined as the …
a group of Asian scientists has framed a new plan to set up a comprehensive system to approach the study of changing monsoon patterns in Asia. A piecemeal approach towards the subject so far has led scientists to take this step. The plan, called mairs (Monsoon Asia Integrated Regional Studies), …
Extreme rainfall events today pose a serious threat to many populated and urbanized areas worldwide; an accurate estimate of frequency and distribution of these events can significantly aid policy planning and observation system design. We report here a first-ever high-resolution (10 KM) analysis of heavy rainfall episodes (defined as 24-hour …
Some teleconnections studies between the monsoon rainfall over four meteorological subdivisions namely, plains of west U.P., East U.P., Bihar Plains and Gangetic West Bengal, thus constituting an area of U.P., adjoining Bihar and West Bengal and different thickness anomaly and geopotential heights over several levels in the troposphere over India …
the brown haze over north-India's sky could portend a dry future. Caused by liquid pollutants suspended in air, the aerosol cloud, infamous for its effects on crops and human health, may result in localised decrease of rainfall. Aerosols reduce speed of winds near the earth's surface, thus leading to reduction …
on february 2, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (ipcc) released its much awaited Fourth Assessment Report. With an unprecedented confidence of 90 per cent, it asserted that climate change is result of human activities. The panel's 2001 Third Assessment Report had put the probability of climate change resulting from …
the 94th edition of the Indian Science Congress, held January 2-7, 2007 at Annamalai University in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, sought to be different. Revolving around the theme of "Planet Earth', it sought to "address vital issues related to our natural habitat'. The areas of deliberation included energy security, earth-ocean-atmosphere interactions, …
Southern Africa is a region facing multiple stressors, including chronic, recurrent food insecurity and persistent threats of famine. Climate information, including seasonal climate forecasts, has been heralded as a promising tool for early-warning systems and agricultural risk management in southern Africa. Nevertheless, there is concern that climate information, for example …
Against a backdrop of rising global surface temperature, the stability of the Indian monsoon rainfall over the past century has been a puzzle. By using a daily rainfall data set, the researchers show (i) significant rising trends in the frequency and the magnitude of extreme rain events and (ii) a …
monsoon distribution in the country is significantly influenced by irrigated agriculture. Scientists are now trying to figure out how vegetation and atmosphere interact and how it affects the spatial distribution of rainfall. A paper published in the July 21 issue of Geophysical Research Letters (Vol 33, No 14) said that …
THE total seasonal rainfall during the year's southwest monsoon (June 1 to September 30) for the country as a whole was 99 per cent of its long-period average (LPA), which, being within plus or minus 10 per cent of the LPA, can be termed as a `normal' monsoon. However, both …
The skewed pattern of rainfall experienced across the country during this year's monsoon appears to be an anomaly. UNPREDICTABLITY of the monsoon, unusual spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall over the four-month period, shifting rainfall patterns, sustained low rainfall activity, drought-like conditions in some areas and excessive rainfall in others, …
Satellite observations suggest vegetation encourages rainfall in Africa. A study led by P M Cox, a scientist with UK's Natural Environment Research Council, says vegetation accounts for around 30 per cent of annual rainfall variation in Africa's Sahel region. For the study, published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters (Vol …
scientists claim to have solved the mystery of links between El Nino and monsoons in India, a development that can lead to more accurate weather forecasts. This was published online in Science's portal on September 7, 2006. El Nino, which means
it may sound incredible, but the mobile phone network may soon be used to measure rainfall. The strength of signals in a cellular network varies with humidity, claims a study by scientists from the University of Tel Aviv in Israel. Thus, existing wireless communication systems can also be used as …
The early civilisations have conventionally been regarded as products of human ingenuity. Of course, favourable geographical conditions also made a difference. But they just might be fortuitous by-products of climate change, according to a recent University of East Anglia study. The findings were presented on September 7, 2006, during the …
There's a popular saying in western Rajasthan: Jaankhiyon laare meh. Loosely translated, it means a good rain always follows dust storms. This summer when Rajasthan's Jaisalmer and Barmer districts witnessed dust storms, people thought it augured relief after six years of drought. The rains did come but the boon fast …
function table() { var popurl="image/20060930/10-table.jpg" winpops=window.open(popurl,"","width=450,height=450,scrollbars=yes") } the monsoon season in Assam is often time for fearful floods. But this year, the state was struck by a terrible drought. The weather office registered a rainfall deficit of more than 40 per cent between June and August. The shortfall has hit …
