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UPSC Prelims 2025 GS Paper 1, question 64

Topic: Environment and ecology

Q64

The World Bank warned that India could become one of the first places where wet-bulb temperatures routinely exceed 35∘35^\circC. Which of the following statements best reflect(s) the implication of the above-said report?

I. Peninsular India will most likely suffer from flooding, tropical cyclones and droughts.

II. The survival of animals including humans will be affected as shedding of their body heat through perspiration becomes difficult.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

  1. (a) I only
  2. (b) II only
  3. (c) Both I and IICorrect answer
  4. (d) Neither I nor II

Solution.

Answer: (c) Both I and II

  1. Statement I is correct: the World Bank report (Climate Investment Opportunities in India's Cooling Sector) notes that rising temperatures and shifting climate patterns expose Peninsular and coastal India to intensified extreme weather events, including flooding, tropical cyclones, and droughts.
  2. Statement II is correct: a wet-bulb temperature of 35∘C35^\circ\text{C} marks the upper physiological limit of human and animal survival because high humidity prevents the body from shedding heat through the evaporation of sweat.

Trap: If Statement I is excluded as a broader climate-change projection rather than a direct physiological consequence of wet-bulb temperature alone, option (b) II only is the narrower reading.