Small biz at higher risk of climate change: Study

A new study of the World Bank has revealed that India's smaller business firms and poor households experience higher levels of climate change-induced extreme heat and flood than better-off ones.

- JITENDRA CHOUBEY

It leads to a continuous trap of poverty and puts challenges to economic growth in developing nations.

Extreme heat is associated with high morbidity and mortality, worsened performance among students as schools close down, reduced agricultural productivity, and costly migration. Floods are associated with loss of properties and damage of agricultural crops.

The study found that poorer neighbourhoods in cities and rural areas in India are more exposed to heat and floods. It says the Relative Wealth Index (RWI) prediction of the relative standard of living within countries data shows that places with lower RWI in urban and rural areas experience higher temperature and flood.