Sustainable habitation

 Climate change is once again on everyone’s mind in India as rain wreaked havoc in several states over the past few days. While New Delhi received heavy downpour during October 17 , unusual for this time of the year, there has been massive damage to human lives in the southern state of Kerala. On October 17, up to 27 people, including several children, died in rain-related incidents in the birthplace of monsoon in the subcontinent. Flash floods triggered by heavy rainfall have struck the north eastern state of Assam, too, like those that witnessed in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand only a few months ago. It may be recalled, that in 2018, all 14 districts of Kerala were affected after once-in-a-century floods left around 400 dead. Nationwide rain-related fatalities reached 1,400. In August that year, landslides left several dead in Himachal Pradesh, another Himalayan state.In the Indian subcontinent, the southwest monsoon, a period of heavy rainfall, usually begins in the first week of June and extends up to August and September, petering out after that. A second, smaller wave of rains, often referred to as “retreating monsoon,” waters some parts of the country in October and November. In recent years, however, this natural schedule has been messed up thoroughly as seen in the heavy downpour being experienced now in several parts of the country. The intensity of rainfall, too, has smashed conventions. These changes have caused a huge number of deaths and lakhs of crores of rupees in financial loss, besides draining the nation’s resources. Not surprisingly, environmentalists ominously hear climate change banging on the country’s doors.Worryingly, a report earlier this month by credit agency India Ratings raised concerns over the matter. “It has already become a reality…Reduced agricultural productivity, heightened water insecurity, extreme weather events, stressed ecosystems, and elevated health risks are some of the manifestations of this climate change.” This abnormal weather has an immediate negative impact on the country’s GDP which could shrink by 3% annually with every 1° Celsius rise in temperature. For a country that has an ambitious plan to achieve a $5 trillion economy, this does not auger well.Climate change causes poverty and food shortages, and forces even higher numbers of men, women and children to flee their homes. Across the world, on average, 26 million people are displaced by disasters such as floods and storms every year. From 1970 to 2019, natural hazards accounted for 50 per cent of all disasters, 45 per cent of all reported deaths and 74 per cent of all reported economic losses. A recent a new UN Environment Programme (UNEP) report warns that unless global greenhouse gas emissions fall by 7.6 per cent each year between 2020 and 2030, the world will miss the opportunity to get on track towards the 1.5°C temperature goal of the Paris Agreement. UNEP’s annual Emissions Gap Report says that even if all current unconditional commitments under the Paris Agreement are implemented, temperatures are expected to rise by 3.2°C, bringing even wider-ranging and more destructive climate impacts. Collective ambition must increase more than fivefold over current levels to deliver the cuts needed over the next decade for the 1.5°C goal. India and China along with the top 20 developed nations have committed to decrease fossil fuel emissions in line with the Paris Agreement. Unless technology makes the switch from fossil to wind and solar energy cheap, the goal would be difficult to achieve.