Asia is heating up, and India is feeling the burn

India Today

7 hours ago

Asia is warming nearly twice as fast as the rest of the world, and the consequences are becoming harder to ignore. According to the World Meteorological Organisation's latest State of the Climate in Asia report, 2024 was among the warmest years ever recorded on the continent. The average temperature across Asia last year was about 1.04 degrees Celsius above the 1991–2020 baseline.advertisementWhy is Asia heating faster?Asia has the largest landmass of any continent, and according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, land surfaces tend to warm more quickly than oceans. However, Asia's surrounding seas are warming up just as fast — its sea surface temperatures rose at 0.24 degrees Celsius per decade, nearly double the global average of 0.13 degrees Celsius — and offer no substantial relief.India's high vulnerability
India, already one of the most climate-vulnerable countries due to its vast population, coastline, and dependence on agriculture, is facing the heat. The country faced one of its longest heat waves in 2024, with temperatures soaring above 45 degrees Celsius in several states, causing more than 450 deaths.India experienced extreme weather events on 322 of the 366 days in 2024, which claimed 3,472 lives and damaged 4.07 million hectares of crop area. Between March and April 17, 2025, India saw a staggering 162 deaths from lightning strikes across 12 states, a 184per cent rise compared to the same period in 2024.advertisementExtreme rainfall events have also grown more frequent and more damaging. For instance, in late July 2024, northern Kerala's Wayanad was hit by massive landslides caused by heavy rains, which claimed more than 350 lives. An analysis by the World Weather Attribution later confirmed that this rainfall was about 10 per cent more intense due to human-driven climate change.Moreover, in 2025, India witnessed extreme weather events nearly every day of the first quarter, per the State of India's Environment In Figures 2025 report. According to the report, the toll from extreme weather events surged in just three years, with weather-linked deaths rising by 15 per cent, and crop damage more than doubled."The State of the Climate in Asia report highlights changes in key indicators such as surface temperature, glacier mass, and sea level — each carries profound implications for societies, economies, and ecosystems," warned WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo. "Extreme weather is already exacting an unacceptably high toll."Adapt to surviveDespite this, climate adaptation remains underfunded. A recent World Resources Institute report found that initiatives like building climate-resilient infrastructure, expanding early warning systems, and restoring natural ecosystems don't just protect lives, but also work economically. Every $1 spent on adaptation can yield up to $10 in savings and benefits over the next decade.As floods, droughts, and heatwaves intensify across the globe, the case for acting now before the next disaster hits has never been stronger.- EndsTune InMust Watch