Explained: Why Ladakh Is Facing Extreme Wet And Dry Spells

For decades, Ladakh's cold desert sat in the comfort of the shadow of the Himalayas. The vast mountain range acted as a natural barrier, taking away moisture from the monsoon winds long before they could reach the high-altitude plateau.Recent rainfall data, however, paints a different image. Over the past five years, Ladakh, the cold desert has seen a dramatic shift in its summer precipitation. Marked by intense wet spells, less winter snowfall and record-breaking seasonal totals. Five Consecutive Years of Excess RainLadakh's rain has been in the spotlight for the past five years. In 2021, Ladakh received 21.9 mm of actual rainfall, which was 42 per cent below the then-normal level of 37.7 mm. In 2022, the IMD revised its long-period average for all-India rainfall, changing the reference period from 1961-2010 to 1971-2020. This brought Ladakh's normal monsoon rainfall down from 37.7 mm to 22.3 mm.