| Summary: | The climate of India consists of a wide range of weather conditions across a vast geographic scale and varied topography. Based on the Köppen system, India hosts six major climatic sub types, ranging from arid deserts in the west, alpine tundra and glaciers in the north, and humid tropical regions supporting rain forests in the southwest and the island territories. Many regions have starkly different microclimates, making it one of the most climatically diverse countries in the world. The country's meteorological department follows the international standard of four seasons with some local adjustments: winter (December to February), summer (March to May), monsoon or rainy season (June to September), and a post-monsoon period (October and November). India's geography and geology are climatically pivotal: the Thar Desert in the northwest and the Himalayas in the north work in tandem to create a culturally and economically important monsoonal regime. As Earth's highest and most massive mountain range, the Himalayas bar the influx of frigid katabatic winds from the icy Tibetan Plateau and northerly Central Asia. Most of North India is thus kept warm or is only mildly chilly or cold during winter; the same thermal dam keeps most regions in India hot in summer. Climate in South India is generally warmer, and more humid due to its coastlines. Definition of Forest: At present, in India, there is no clear nationally-accepted definition of ‘forest’. States are responsible for determining their definition of forests. The prerogative of the states to define forests stems from a 1996 Supreme Court order called the T.N. Godavarman Thirumulkpad vs the Union of India judgment. In the judgement, the Supreme Court interpreted that the word “forest” must be understood according to its “dictionary meaning”. This description covers all statutorily recognised forests, whether designated as reserved, protected or otherwise. Constitutional Provisions: Forests are included in the Concurrent List in the (Seventh Schedule) of the ...
|
|---|