A Record El Niño and a Broken 1.5°C Promise: Two UN Warnings India Cannot Ignore

The El Niño building in the Pacific is set to break every record for strength. And for at least six decades, the world cannot hold warming to 1.5°C, the limit every country agreed to a decade ago. Experts expect India to be among the worst affected.
UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report 2026, released in London on October 21, puts mid-century peak warming at no less than 1.7–1.8°C. Emissions must fall 18% by 2030, 45% by 2035 and 69% by 2040, from 2025 levels.
The same day in Geneva, the WMO warned tropical Pacific sea temperatures may rise 3.8°C above average between November 2026 and January 2027. An El Niño is declared at 0.5°C. This one could be over seven times that.
For India: a weaker monsoon, drought, heatwaves, crop stress, health risks, and strain on water and power. Half-empty reservoirs and soaring peak demand will be met by burning more coal.
Early warning, climate-resilient farming, water conservation and heat plans cannot wait on a Modi government that puts corporate profit first. The powerful broke the 1.5°C promise. Working people will pay.
🔗 Source: The Telegraph, 26 October 2026 — https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/el-nino-warning-global-warming-set-to-breach-over-1c-limit-as-climate-risks-intensify-prnt/cid/2186240