IF THERE were a silver lining to the massive cloud of pollutants hanging over India, it would be that this brown haze is doing farmers a favour by counteracting global warming. In fact it does more harm than good, and getting rid of it would probably increase the rice harvest.
Between October and May, a 3-kilometre-thick brown haze sits over much of south Asia and the northern Indian Ocean. Caused mostly by urban emissions and wood fires, this dirty cloud cools the region by reflecting sunlight back into space. Unfortunately it also reduces evaporation, leading to a reduction in monsoon…
