Variability of climate change in India

In this article meteorological measurements in India are analysed showing marked trends of increasing temperature over the past quarter century, but significant variations in these trends during different seasons and over different regions of India. Marked differences between the variations in minimum temperatures in North and South India have been brought out. Tentative explanations are proposed in terms of the effects of variations in cloudiness. The effects of airborne dust on clouds and on precipitation, as well as the interactions between airflow over the mountains and the monsoon may also have a significant effect on climatic variations. The practical implications of these changes in climate for agriculture and the effects on human health through increasing temperature are likely to be serious, and vary significantly across the regions of India. For India, the importance of dealing with climate change as an integral part of its economic and social development is strongly emphasized.