"As per the fifth Assessment Report of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published in 2014, surface temperature is projected to rise over the 21st century under all emission scenarios. Heat waves are likely to be more frequent and of longer duration in many regions," the minister said replying to a question in Rajya Sabha.
He said the projected annual average rise in surface air temperature by 2030 ranges from 1.7 degrees Celsius to 2.0 degrees Celsius over 1970.
The minister said as per India's Second National Communication submitted to UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in 2012, the annual mean surface air temperature rise by the end of the century ranges from 3.5 degrees Celsius to 4.3 degrees Celsius over 1960s.