Long-term Spatio-temporal Variation of Meteorological Drought in Northwest India

This study focuses on the spatial and temporal patterns of meteorological drought by analyzing the monthly distribution of rainfall and temperature across Punjab and Haryana in Northwest India. The rainfall and temperature analysis was done from 1966 to 2017. The trend change was assessed using the Mann-Kendall test. Standardized potential evapotranspiration index (SPEI) was used to estimate the wetness and dryness for different months and seasons, with special reference to rice (SPEI-5 June-October) and wheat (SPEI-5 November-March) growing seasons during the study period. The analysis shows that Punjab has a significant decreasing trend of meteorological drought. It was reported in the Gurdaspur (SPEI-5 October) and the South-western districts of Ferozepur and Bathinda (SPEI-5 March). In Haryana, significant decreasing trends of meteorological drought were observed inAmbala, Gurgaon, Karnal, and Rohtakduring (SPEI-5 October) and, Hisar and Rohtak in (SPEI-5 March).Acomprehensive understanding of precipitation and temperature variability, trends, and change points is of unprecedented interest to a researcher because it is required for developing better contingency plans to mitigate the effects of climate change and increase future resilience.