New Delhi: India experienced extreme weather events on 93 per cent of the days in the first nine months of 2024, with 255 out of 274 days affected, according to the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). These events led to 3,238 deaths, the destruction of over 2.35 lakh houses and buildings and crop damage across 3.2 million hectares of land.
This marks a huge rise in the frequency and severity of extreme weather compared to the same period in 2023, which saw 235 extreme weather days, which resulted in 2,923 deaths, 80,293 damaged houses and crop damage on 1.84 million hectares.
India’s extreme weather toll
The CSE’s annual “state of extreme weather” report said that Madhya Pradesh was the hardest-hit state, experiencing extreme weather for 176 days, the highest in the country. Kerala reported the highest number of fatalities (550), followed by Madhya Pradesh (353) and Assam (256).
In terms of property damage, Andhra Pradesh saw the most houses destroyed, with 85,806 homes affected. Maharashtra, which experienced extreme weather for 142 days, accounted for over 60 per cent of the national crop damage, with Madhya Pradesh following closely. Sunita Narain, director-general of the CSE, said that these figures are no longer hypothetical but part of an escalating climate crisis. She said that without substantial action to combat climate change, the situation would worsen.
Region-wise, central India faced the highest frequency of extreme weather events, with 218 days of such events, while the northwest experienced 213. In terms of casualties, the central region recorded the most deaths (1,001), followed by the southern Peninsula (762), the east and northeast (741) and the northwest (734).
Climate records shattered
CSE analysts also said that the reported damages could be underestimated due to gaps in data collection, especially regarding public property and crop loss. Apart from the the extreme weather, the CSE said that January 2024 was India’s ninth driest January since 1901 and the country recorded its second-highest February minimum temperature in 123 years. May saw the fourth-highest mean temperature on record and the months of July, August and September recorded the highest minimum temperatures in over a century.
