From CK Nayak
NEW DELHI: Meghalaya and the Himalayas will see a rise in temperature of over one degree between 2021 and 2050 which will be higher than the global average, findings at a recently concluded conference in Bonn stated.
There will be a rise of 1.8°C to 1.9°C in three Garo Hills districts – West Garo Hills, East Garo Hills and South Garo Hills. In other parts of the state, the rise will be between 1.6°C and 1.7°C, the report titled ‘The State of the Climate’, released by the World Meteorological Organisation, added. While mountain communities are the worst hit, the impact is also being felt in other regions.
Similar projections have been made for other states in the Indian Himalayan Region. In the region, farmers in Mizoram have been forced to take to exotic species such as dragon fruit, which are heat tolerant and can be grown at up to 40 degrees.
The production of muga silk is shifting from Assam to Mizoram as silkworms cannot survive the rising temperature in Assam, the report added.
This region has already started feeling the impact of rising temperatures and erratic rainfall on their livelihoods. Temperatures are rising locally in many regions of the world, rainfall patterns have drastically changed and agricultural productivity has taken a hit the report said.
The report points out that 2017 will be one of the three hottest years on record with many high-impact events, including catastrophic hurricanes and floods, debilitating heat waves and drought.
“The past three years have all been on the top in terms of temperature records. This is a part of a long-term warming trend,” said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas. “We have witnessed extraordinary weather, including temperatures topping 50°C in Asia,” he added. Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change, which hosted the Bonn conference, said, “These findings underline the rising risks to people, economies and the fabric of life on Earth if we fail to get on track with the aims and ambitions of the Paris Agreement.”
“Bonn 2017 needs to be the launch pad towards the next, higher level of ambition by all nations and all sectors of society as we look to de-risk the future and maximize the opportunities from a fresh, forward-looking and sustainable development path,” she said.
(Contd on P-10)
