Shh... Listen! Do You Hear The Sound Of Climate Change?

Temperature crossed 50 degrees mark in India signalling the needs to focus on Climate change

In the latest of climate change news, heavy rains and winds have shocked the western regions of India especially the financial capital, Mumbai. With winds blowing at a speed of 104 km/hr, rooftops and signboards are destroyed and a total disruption is witnessed in the transport and travelling routes of the city. Every year, the western region of India is heavily precipitated by rains but this year things seem to move in another direction pointing out the need to focus on climate change. 

From 2019 mid-March to May-end, heatwaves across various states in India killed more than 30 people (New York Times). With an average temperature ranging from 43C° to 49C° and in some regions of Rajasthan and Delhi crossing the 50C° mark, concerns regarding the climate change in India are shelling out. With the increasing industrialization and population crux, climate change solutions are a distant subject for the Indian authorities. With little to no planning on the rising temperatures and global warming, the Indian government is very far from managing the future crisis. 

The Indian States which have to gear for the climate change

In the northern states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, landslides have disturbed the daily life. For the states of Assam and Bihar, floods have killed over 100 people and more than thousands are stranded. Be it the urban regions or the national parks floods and heavy rains put the life of the states on hold. 

What is the media doing? 

It was only for the heavy rains of Mumbai and the floods of Assam and Bihar to ignite climate change reporting and news. Be it the news channels like NDTV and News18 or newspaper and web portals, each and every media house have totally ignored the ever-rising need of alarming masses about the consequences of climate change in India. 

Read: Lives of Fishermen to be disrupted by climate change

As more people lose their homes and lives, the newsrooms have shifted themselves into chit-chat platforms discussing the in and out of temples, etc. With no debate or real-time reporting prior to the happening, the Indian media has totally failed the citizens.

Issues around the world

One of the main concerns relating to global climate change is migration. In recent times, people living in the areas which are affected the most by climate change have started to migrate. Leaving their usual life, people have moved to cities adapting the new life escaping from the issues of climate change. 

By 2080, Climate Change could drive more than 6.5 million people to migrate to the USA from Mexico

In a detailed report by the New York Times titled "The Great Climate Migration", cases of people migrating due to lack of food, agriculture and rising temperatures have been highlighted. The report signifies the migrants from the northern as well as the central Mexican region wishing to migrate to the USA. As they escape from their life in their home town, the struggles they face to survive in the new environment of the cities as been reported. The hindrances caused by climate change in Mexico has resulted in a rise of local mafia and drug lords. This, on the top of the failed farming, has made the life of local maize and other farmers miserable. 

Read the report by The New York Times

Story of South Asia

The region which is home to around 1/4th of the global population will see a massive shortage of basic supplies like food and water. As climate change approaches quicker than ever, an estimate of 8 million people have migrated from the South Asian regions mainly to the Persian Gulf, states the World Bank.

With the uncontrollable popular expansion in Bangladesh and India, disrupt in the climate could make things far worse than the statistics. 

Will we see the year 2100? 

Global reports have stressed concern about the rising global temperature. If the global temperature rises at the current rate,  by the year 2050, regions near the coast and countries like Bangladesh, Maldives, South Africa and Indonesia will partially submerge in the ocean waters. The problems relating to the rising temperatures will also cause the global economy to drop like never before. 

Governments and media houses around the world need to shift their focus on climate change. They need to analyse the various reports and bring out temporary as well as permanent climate change solutions. 

As we as a society have started to progress our research on Mars but it is time we take a step back and change our priorities back to the rising temperatures, floods, and other global warming issues