Holi To Get Warmer With Each Passing Year: Study

Holi, the festival of colours was celebrated yesterday, March 25, around the country with great zeal and enthusiasm. This festival signifies the start of the summer season in the country. However, as per a new study, the scientists believe that Holi is getting hotter with each passing year, which will eventually lead to dangerous times.

As per reports, the new study revealed that since 1970, the months of March and April have experienced a spike in temperatures in our country, which increases the dangers of an uncomfortable and too-hot climate. The scientists revealed that in the coming times, the temperature during the festival of Holi could reach 40 degrees Celsius, something very rare in the 70s.

This study was performed by Climate Central, a group of communicators and scientists from the US, working independently. For analysis, the researchers assessed daily temperatures from the date of January 1, 1970, till December 31, 2023.

The study revealed that during March the northern and western regions in the country showed the highest temperatures compared to the levels from 1970. Jammu and Kashmir experienced the highest rate of increase in average temperature, which is reported to be around 2.8 degrees Celsius. In April, the country showed an even distribution of high temperatures, where Mizoram was found to have the highest increase, at approximately 1.9 degrees Celsius since 1970.

According to the study, in the early 1970s, only three states in the country showed more than a 5 per cent chance of having temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius during late March. These states were Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Bihar. Whereas, the recent number has increased to nine states, which are the three original states followed by Rajasthan, Gujarat, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. Maharashtra showed a huge increase in probability, now standing at 14 per cent.

After analysing 51 cities in the country, the researchers discovered that 37 of them, making up around 73 per cent, had a 1 per cent chance of temperatures being 40 degrees Celsius or higher. 11 cities showed 10 per cent probability and Bilaspur recorded the highest at 31 per cent.