Climate change will raise temperatures in India, alter rainfall and agriculture patterns, make droughts and cyclones more severe and increase floods, the country's environment ministry said in a report Tuesday.

The report--released ahead of United Nations climate change talks in Mexico on Nov. 29-Dec. 10--looks to the 2030s and the impact of climate change on agriculture, water, health and natural ecosystems and biodiversity in four "climate sensitive regions" of India--the Himalayas, the Western Ghats, coastal areas and the northeast.

"Climate change scenarios for (the) 2030s indicate an overall warming for all the regions in focus," India's Ministry of Environment and Forests said in a statement accompanying the report, which estimates that temperatures in the 2030s will be 1.7-2.2 degrees Celsius higher than in the 1970s.

The environment ministry said by the 2030s, on average, the frequency of rainy days is likely to decrease in most parts of the country, while cyclones will increase in intensity, but not frequency.

"Moderate-to-extreme drought severity is projected in (the) 2030s for the Himalayan region," the report said, adding that all regions assessed are likely to experience 10%-30% higher flood levels.

It also said malaria may spread to new areas, like the northern-most state of Jammu and Kashmir , as well as spreading more easily in the northeast of the country. But it may become less prevalent on the eastern coast.

"There is no country in the world that is as vulnerable, on so many dimensions, to climate change as India is. This makes it imperative for us to have sound evidence-based assessments on the impact of climate change," Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said in a statement.

Ramesh has previously said that developed countries have "distorted and misused" information on climate change to suit political purposes.

He has said India needs to bolster its negotiating stand at the global level and counter the "propaganda science" of developed countries with its own information.

Countries ranging from India and China to small island nations have argued that they are likely to be worst affected by climate change as their economies depend on climate sensitive sectors like agriculture.
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