Is the global climate emergency making South Asia unlivable?

On Tuesday, June 28 at 19:30 GMT:
In northeastern Bangladesh and India, monsoon rains have caused some of the worst flooding the region has seen in years. Last week, at least 9.5 million people were affected and more than 100 have been killed in floods, lightning strikes and landslides. Millions remain stranded with little access to food and drinking water.

Scientists say climate change has made the region’s monsoon season – which usually starts in June – unpredictable and more variable compared to past decades. This year’s pre-monsoon rainfall started in March and much of it is expected to come in shorter and potentially more dangerous spells.

The floods are yet another example of the precarious situation facing millions of South Asians living on the frontlines of the global climate emergency and increasingly exposed to excessive heat waves, crop-killing dry conditions, and dangerous rainy seasons. Some coastal villages in Bangladesh are now uninhabitable due to rising sea levels.

In this episode of The Stream, we’ll look at the ongoing floods and impact of extreme weather conditions in South Asia.

On this episode of The Stream, we speak with:
Sharaban Tahura Zaman
Environmental lawyer

Ritu Bharadwaj, @RituBharadwaj16
Senior researcher, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)

Pavni Mittal, @pavnimittal
Correspondent, Al Jazeera English