India may face catastrophic impacts due to global warming, IPCC reports warn

Temperature rise, sea level increase, catastrophic impacts on the lives and livelihoods of people are some of the big challenges for India, according to the recently-released Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) synthesis report.

This report consolidates six reports and has more significant ramifications for policy.

“One of the most significant implications of the report for India is the increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. These events could have dire consequences for agriculture, the economy, and public health. The report highlights the need for policymakers to prioritise investments in disaster risk reduction, including early warning systems, evacuation plans, and infrastructure development to protect vulnerable populations,” said Dr Anjal Prakash, Research Director, Bharti Institute of Public Policy, Indian School of Business and IPCC lead author for two of the reports.

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“This is the first time six reports were published in a cycle and provides very robust science which can influence the next few years of action in this decade. The report clearly shows that it is theoretically possible to limit warming to 1.5°C, but the current scale, scope and pace of global action pledged under 2030 is not enough. So we are not on track that is very clearly mentioned in this report with very high confidence,” points out Prof. Joyashree Roy, Energy Economics programme, Asian Institute of Technology, one of the 93 authors of the IPCC synthesis report.

The report says India is not compatible with even 2 degree Celsius warming, and it may even surpass that based on the current trends. This is alarming because each fraction of warming has an implication for India and regions within the country.

The report warns that each fraction of warming will have catastrophic impacts on the lives and livelihoods of people. India has about 400 million people from marginalised societies which are most vulnerable to climate change residing in coastal zones and those having agricultural incomes, and this trend is very alarming for the country.

“There is a need to address the current shortfall in climate finances as this (India and the Global South) is the part of the world which has contributed least to climate change but is the most vulnerable and affected by climate events (cyclones, floods, disasters, etc.). There is a need to rethink how the climate finance world works and what are the other efforts that can be done to boost the finance opportunities to ensure climate resilience,” the report states.

"Looking to the global north for solutions is not an option as it will be too late for action but the need is to look inward, find solutions within the country. India has the 5th largest economy in the world and there is a need to work towards developing the focus internally, and build national and state-specific climate resilient pathways," it said.