Climate change is making India's monsoon more erratic, says report

The summer monsoon in 2021 kept India guessing, even on its way out. Expect more of the same in future, say climate change assessments

Extremely heavy rainfall events over the last two monsoon periods may have led to a perception that India's summer monsoon rainfall has increased, but it has in fact decreased by 6% over the past 60 years, say Indian government and international climate change assessments. The summer monsoon in 2021, though 'normal', was marked by a number of such localised extreme rainfall events and displayed variability in patterns of rainfall dispersal, both of which will only increase in future, these assessments warn.

The summer, or south west, monsoon, accounts for 70% of India's annual rainfall and is crucial for its agricultural