25,000 suffer heatstroke, 61 dead: India reeling under heat

by June 17, 2024 Environment
Why have temperatures soared above 40 degrees? Whom does the heatwave affect the most? Watch this video, as we try to decode the heatwave in India.

India has been under the grip of a devastating heat wave for the past few months. Since April this year several parts of the country have seen abnormally high temperatures. For instance,  Bengaluru recorded a maximum temperature of 38.5 degrees Celsius on a Sunday, the city’s hottest April day since 2016. The city and parts of Southwestern regions of the country have experienced relief with the arrival of monsoon.

workers drinking water
Representational image. Civic workers in the heat in Chennai. Pic: Padmaja Jayaraman

However, conditions appear to be dire in North, Central and Eastern India. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued multiple heatwave warnings since May in parts of North Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan, Bihar and UP. This is considered one of the longest heatwaves that the country has experienced.

Temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius have changed working patterns, shutdown schools and workplaces. Worse, 25,000 people have suffered from heatstroke and over 61 have lost their lives.

Why is this happening? Who is it affecting the most? And what do we do about the heat? We are going to try and answer all these questions in this three-part series.
In Part 1 of this video series, we explain what a heatwave is, why it’s happening and what the government is doing about it.

Also read:

Sections:

About Bhanu Sridharan

Bhanu is a Senior Reporter at Citizen Matters, Bengaluru. She previously worked an independent journalist and primarily covered environmental issues. Her work has been published in Mongabay India, the Wire, Caravan and Citizen Matters. She is interested in issues of justice, equity, access to nature and how Bengaluru's growth impacts nature and people.
Read more by Bhanu Sridharan

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Similar Story

PM2.5 pollution: Why Bengaluru urgently needs hyperlocal air quality monitoring

by January 18, 2025 Environment
High-density traffic corridors and industrial hubs cause PM2.5 pollution in localised hotspots of Bengaluru.

Hazy mornings with the air thickened by vehicular smoke during peak-hour traffic are synonymous with Bengaluru winters. The city may have lower PM2.5 levels overall when compared to other mega cities, but high-density traffic corridors and emissions in industrial hubs are causing localised pollution spikes. A November 2024 study by Respirer Living Sciences, analysing PM2.5 pollution levels across ten Indian cities, revealed this data. The study examined AQI information from 13 Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring (CAAQM) sites in Bengaluru that recorded an average of 39 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m3) of PM2.5 air pollutants in November 2024. This is…

Continue reading

Similar Story

Mapping Bengaluru’s lake assets: A guide to sustainable urban water bodies

by January 18, 2025 Environment
In Part II of our ongoing series on lake systems, we look at the 'assets' that make these complex ecosystems sustainable, and the role of each.

A lake is much more than a mere water body, it is a complex ecosystem. All those resources or features that make this ecosystem complete and sustainable can be considered lake assets. Assets are generally classified into core zone assets (ecological zone assets) and social zone assets (recreational zone assets). Each serves a set of distinct purposes, supporting the ecological, infrastructural and social functions of a lake system. Here is an overview of the kind of assets that come under each category and the role they play in the lake ecosystem: Core zone assets (Ecological zone assets) These assets are…

Continue reading