PRINCE KUMAR
Ranchi, April 24: A tremendous change of 1 degree Celsius has been noticed in March’s average maximum temperature in Ranchi between 1966 to 2022, which has added to the phenomenon of the Heat Island Effect in the city.
In a survey by a lagatar24.com correspondent, it was found that the average maximum temperature in the month of March from 1969 to 2014 remained at 31.2 degrees Celsius, which drastically shifted to 32.2 degrees Celsius between 2015 and 2022.
Similarly, the average minimum temperature for March from 1969 to 2014 remained at 16.4 degrees Celsius, whereas the same increased to 17.2 degrees Celsius from 2015 to 2022.
At the same time, the rainfall in the month of March has also significantly decreased. From 1969 to 2014, out of 1426 days, rainfall happened on 223 days, taking the rainfall percentage to 15.63%. The same from 2015 to 2022 decreased to 12.1%, where out of 248 days, rain fell only on 30 days.
Observing the outline of the changes that Ranchi is facing, Assistant Professor, Department of Geology at Ranchi University cum Environmentalist Nitish Priyadarshi said that in 1971, the temperature had gone between 39–40 degrees Celsius during the month of April, but Ranchi remained cool due to the evening shower, which has not been seen till now due to the breakage of the hydrological cycle.
“There are several factors which are responsible for the breaking up of the hydrological cycle, which include concretisation of the city, covering up the soil area, destruction of jungle areas, and destruction of green patches in the city,” Priyadarshi said.
“A city which was known as the summer capital is now facing severe heat issues due to a decrease in the evaporation as the sources of evaporation have been made limited due to the decrease in forest cover, concretisation of banks of rivers, decreasing the size of the river and many more,” Priyadarshi added.
Describing the climate change effect in the city, Priyadarshi said that due to poor city planning and an increase in population density, a phenomenon known as the heat island effect is being seen in Ranchi, where the urbanised areas experience higher temperatures than the outlying areas and the possibility of rain also decreases in the urbanised areas. Due to the concretisation of urban areas, the heat radiation is greater in the city, and the hot air in the city rises, up pushing the clouds away from the city.
Echoing the same, IMD Director Abhishek Anand said that due to the increase in the temperature over the years, forest fires have become a common phenomenon. Also, the increase in population density over the years, which in turn has increased vehicular pollution, has resulted in an increase in the severity of heat in the city. Cases of urban flooding can also be seen due to unavailability of soil areas and stoppage of water flowing areas, which has resulted in poor groundwater recharge.
“Construction of roads has prevented the flow of water in the Hatia Dam, which has resulted in a shortage of water. Also, the destruction of green patches in several areas in the city has added to the severity of the heat which is being felt at present ” Anand added.
Sharing the measures to curb the effect of the severity of heat, Priyadarshi said that the state government should plan to protect the forest cover, which will decrease the heat radiation from the stones of the hills. Green patches should be created in the city, and the concretisation of soil areas should be checked. At the same time, there must be a check on the groundwater discharge through boring, which decreases the water evaporation capacity of the soil due to the lower availability of moisture.
“More and more ponds should be created in the city so that evaporation can take place, which will enhance the chances of an evening shower after a hot, humid day. Also, measures should be taken to protect the old forest as the creation of new forest areas will take years to happen. People in the city should also use water wisely, and barren areas should be planted with plants. At the same time, the concretisation of the barren areas should be prevented so that rainwater gets a way to recharge the groundwater level,” Priyadarshi added.
