In the last five decades, heat waves have become more frequent in India. This year it started as early as March, usually a pleasant spring month, but now the warmest in 122 years. The most serious consequence of this is that the wheat crop is at its worst in years.
With the wheat not ready to harvest until April, farmers had no choice but to watch the hot sun shrink their grains in March. In the northern state of Haryana, the yield per hectare for many farmers was at least half, and sometimes only a quarter, of last year’s yield. That while India wants to export more wheat this year in view of global shortages. And for tens of thousands of farmers, it means they are not making any profit this season.
Coal-fired power stations cannot meet demand
The power cuts are also bad for the economy and also heavy for Indians, who have to do without cooling their fan. Because coal-fired power stations don’t have enough supplies for the sudden high demand for power – with the rich and middle classes suddenly turning on their air conditioners day and night – there are power outages in some places for up to eight hours a day.
Coal stocks prior to the summer were the lowest in nine years, partly because prices have risen since the war in Ukraine. Factories are particularly affected by this, because they are the first to deal with planned periods without electricity. In the state of Punjab, farmers protested the irregular power cuts this week by blocking traffic.
Rain and thunderstorms stay away
One cause of the heat is the lack of regular rain and thunderstorms outside. Scientists at India’s Meteorological Institute IMD say these are usually caused by easterly winds from the Mediterranean region. This year there was not enough of that. What also contributes is India’s growing population, and the accompanying pressure on nature: less forest and more cement, which retains heat.
Thunderstorms are expected in early May, causing temperatures to drop slightly. But summer is just around the corner and more heat waves are likely to follow.
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