El Niño, the climate forcing that warms up the Pacific and disrupts weather across the world, is back. Scientists fear it will contribute to 2024 being the hottest year in recorded history. For India, which is reeling under massive heat waves, it’s particularly worrisome. 60% of the country’s droughts in 130 years have coincided with El Nino events. The jury is out on how severe the imminent bout will be. But El Nino can disrupt rains; which has knock-on effects on food prices, consumption, markets, and public health. How worried should you be? And as the world heats up and climate shocks become more frequent, how long before India becomes truly climate-proof?
Host Anirban Chowdhury speaks extensively with Dr. Kim Cobb, American climate scientist and Professor at Brown University, Kamiar Mohaddes, Associate Professor in Economics at the University of Cambridge, Saransh Bajpai, Associate Director - Climate Program at WRI India, Saugata Bhattacharya - Senior Vice President and Chief Economist at Axis Bank, and Pankaj Pandey, Head of Research at ICICI Securities. Credits: CNBC, MoneyControl, WION, Julien Miquel, Emma Saying, National Geographic, BQ Prime, Fox 11, Seeker, NDTV, NDTV 2, WION 2 and The El Nino Song