Rain clouds thinning out in west and central India

Low-flying clouds that usually bring rain in the monsoon have thinned out and reduced over the years in India, according to a study of 50 years of observations by the Indian Met department.

This means that there will be more number of hotter days, less rainy days and more days with large difference between day and night temperatures.

That’s the average for the whole country over all seasons. In the monsoon season, which brings over 70 per cent of rain to India, most of the northern plains stretching from Punjab to Bihar showed increased low-cloud cover by 4-8 per cent every decade.


But on the Western coast and central India, the low-cloud cover is declining by 4-6 per cent per decade, which means less rain and more heat. The IMD study has worrying implications for India because over half of farming is still dependent on rains.

More or less rain can affect crop yields playing havoc with food security and the economy. More hot days also affects large numbers of people. Low clouds are usually those found up to 6,500 feet.

They are very difficult to study and predict but have a great impact on trapping heat as also rain bearing. Changing climate has induced further unpredictability in their behaviour.

The study, conducted by A.K. Jaswal, P A Kore and Virendra Singh of the IMD, did not say why this decline in low clouds is taking place, although they speculate that increasing particulate matter, called aerosols, made up of smoke and dust may be one cause.