Climate change blamed for extreme rainfall events in Hyderabad

Last week, unseasonable rains and hailstorms disrupted normalcy and damaged standing crops in Hyderabad, and experts attribute these extreme weather events to a combination of factors, including weather systems and cyclone circulation.

Unusual weather in Hyderabad

Mahesh Palawat, Skymet Weather's Vice President of Meteorology and Climate Change explained that April saw a series of five unusual weather systems, as their intensity and frequency usually start to reduce in April.

New and fresh disturbances are developing over the western Himalayas, and individual cyclonic circulations are also occurring. A north-south “valley” has persisted for several days, sometimes from Vidarbha or eastern Madhya Pradesh to southern Tamil Nadu via Telangana. As a result, the rainy activities are particularly severe in Telangana.

Palawat stated that the intensity of the hailstorms observed across the country during March and April was very high. He attributed this to climate change, as severe weather events are on the rise and unpredictable weather has become the norm.

Hail storms are increasing in North West India while dust storms are decreasing. Hail storms were not common in central and southern India but these regions are also experiencing such weather conditions due to climate change.

climate change and the urban heat

Experts said that climate change and the urban heat island effect are two major drivers of unexpected rainfall in the state, particularly in urban areas. Summer showers are thundershowers related to convection currents, and hailstorms occur when convection currents push clouds too high when the ground is extremely hot.

Pollution and dust are causing heavy rains in the urban phenomenon known as the heat island effect. The heat island effect occurs when the average temperature in the urban region is higher than in the peri-urban and rural areas, which is mostly responsible for the incessant and intense rains in the city.

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