Varanasi: The seventh meeting of the reconstituted expert committee (EC), Climate Change Programme (CCP), Climate Change & Clean Energy (C3E) of department of Science & Technology (DST), took place in Banaras Hindu University on Monday.The committee reviewed the existing CoEs under the National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change (NMSKCC) and National Mission for Sustaining Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) missions on their overall performance, research initiatives, implementation feasibility from policy perspectives and the adaptation strategies proposed to address the emerging climate challenges.Akhilesh Gupta, the senior advisor, DST, secretary, Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), emphasised on the need of an interdisciplinary and holistic approach of climate research from national to local level for strengthening climate resilience, developing state of the art infrastructural capabilities and capacity building. The five-year outcome report of DST Mahamana Centre of Excellence in climate change research was also released in the meeting. The meeting was attended by Prof Talat Ahmad, former VC, University of Kashmir, Anita Gupta from Climate Change & Clean Energy division of DST, Nisha Mendiratta, advisor-head, Women in Science and Engineering (WISE-KIRAN) Susheela Negi, scientist from DST, Anil K Gupta, head, National Institute of Disaster Management, Kalachand Sain, director, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Prof V Geethalakshmi, VC Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Prof. NH Ravindranath, former professor, IISc Bangalore, and others.We also published the following articles recentlyExplained: The impact of climate change on our planetClimate change, driven by human activities, has wide-ranging consequences including rising global temperatures, extreme weather events, ocean acidification, impacts on biodiversity, rising sea levels, health and food security concerns. Efforts to combat climate change involve mitigation and adaptation strategies, as well as global cooperation through agreements like the Paris Agreement. Addressing climate change requires collective action at all levels, as the health of the planet is interconnected with the well-being of future generations. Understanding the impact of climate change is crucial for meaningful action towards a sustainable and resilient world.Climate change is improving French wine -- for nowA new study suggests that climate change could contribute to superior vintages of wine. By analyzing wine critic scores from Bordeaux, the research found that good years are characterized by warmer temperatures, greater differences between winter and summer, and earlier, shorter growing seasons. However, climate change also exposes vineyards to more extreme events, such as fires, frost, and hail storms. While the trend is currently positive, there is a point at which climate change could have a detrimental impact on wine quality. The study suggests that the same trends could apply to other wine-growing regions as well.Is climate change the reason for Sikkim flash floods?A devastating flash flood occurred in Sikkim, India, after a glacial lake collapsed, causing destruction downstream. The flood claimed the lives of 82 people, with at least 100 still missing. Warning signs of the flood threat had been observed, including satellite images showing the growth of the glacial lake in the past 30 years. Similar events, such as the 2013 Kedarnath floods and the 2021 Chamoli disaster, have happened in the past due to heavy rainfall and melting glaciers. Climate change exacerbates the risks of such extreme events. Measures to mitigate the damage include reducing the volume of glacial lakes and relocating settlements at risk. Proper environmental assessments of infrastructure projects are also crucial.

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