The story so far: The environmental perils of climate change are worsening social hazards, such as domestic violence. As the average annual temperature increased by 1° C, three South Asian countries — India, Nepal and Pakistan — witnessed a rise of more than 6.3% in incidents of intimate partner violence (IPV), per a new study published in JAMA Psychiatry.
India in particularregistered the biggest jump among the three nations: for a 1° C rise, physical violence rose by 8% and sexual violence by 7.3%. By 2090, India is projected to will experience the highest increase in IPV — estimated at 23.5%, as compared to Nepal’s 14.8% and Pakistan’s 5.9%.
90% of India falls under the ‘danger zone’ of extreme heat. The punishing Uttar Pradesh heat wave, linked to the deaths of more than 100 people, was made two times more likely due to climate change. The present research builds on evidence that the climate crisis triggers veiled consequences for gender and sexual minorities, tipping the skewed power relations in patriarchal societies out of balance.
