India, Feb. 15 -- January this year was the warmest since weather record-keeping began in 1901. Eighteen out of the past 19 months saw the global average surface air temperature exceed 1.5degC above the pre-industrial levels, which is the consensus warming threshold to prevent irreversible effects of the climate crisis. The past year was the hottest year on record; in fact, each of the years in the past decade has been breaking this record.

The rising heat is narrowing the window of the already-short Indian spring. The pleasant or bearable months are now getting squeezed as February gets warmer. Climate studies warn us to brace for extreme weather events wherein the impacts of the climate crisis will blur the lines between natural and hu...