76 per cent of India's population at 'high' to 'very high' heat risk: Study

About 57 per cent of Indian districts home to 76 per cent of Indias total population are currently at high to very high heat risk according to a new studyAccording to the study published on Tuesday by Delhibased climate and energy thinktank Council on Energy Environment and Water CEEW the 10 states and union territories with the highest heat risk include Delhi Maharashtra Goa Kerala Gujarat Rajasthan Tamil Nadu Andhra Pradesh Madhya Pradesh and Uttar PradeshIt also found that the number of very warm nights has increased faster than that of very hot days in the last decadeVery warm nights and very hot days are defined as periods when minimum and maximum temperatures rise above the 95th percentile threshold ie what was normal for 95 per cent of the time in the pastAs part of the study CEEW researchers developed a Heat Risk Index HRI for 734 districts using 40 years of climate data 19822022 and satellite images to study heat trends land use water bodies and green coverThey also included data on population buildings health and socioeconomic factors along with night temperatures and humidity for a comprehensive picture of heat riskOur study found that 417 out of 734 Indian districts fell in the high and very high risk categories 151 under high risk and 266 under very high risk A total of 201 districts fell in the moderate category and 116 fell in either the low or very low categoriesThis does not mean that these districts are free of heat risk but that it is relatively lesser than that of other districts Vishwas Chitale senior programme lead at CEEW saidAccording to the study the number of very hot days is increasing in India but concerningly the number of very warm nights is increasing even more creating health risksHigh night temperatures are considered dangerous because the body does not get a chance to cool down Increasing nighttime temperature is more common in cities because of the urban heat island effect in which the metro areas are significantly hotter than their surroundingsThe rise in very warm nights is most noticeable in districts with a large population over 10 lakh which are often home to TierI and TierII cities In the last decade Mumbai saw 15 additional very warm nights per summer Bengaluru 11 Bhopal and Jaipur 7 each Delhi 6 and Chennai 4 the report saidThe study revealed that even in the traditionally cooler Himalayan regions where heat thresholds are lower than in the plains and coasts both very hot days and very warm nights have increasedThis could severely impact the fragile mountain ecosystemsFor example in the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh the number of very hot days and very warm nights rose by over 15 days and nights each summerThe study also showed that north Indias summer humidity climbed from 3040 per cent to 4050 per cent in the last decade worsening heat stress especially in the IndoGangetic plain where farm workers toil outdoorsAlso early mornings now feel hotter due to humid conditions Cities like Delhi Chandigarh Jaipur and Lucknow have seen a 6 to 9 per cent riseCEEW researchers said cities like Mumbai Delhi and much of the IndoGangetic plain face the highest exposure as high population density dense buildings and existing socioeconomic and health issues worsen heat risksBuiltup areas grew rapidly between 2005 and 2023 especially in TierII and TierIII cities trapping heatDistricts in Andhra Pradesh Maharashtra and others face greater vulnerability due to high temperatures and health factorsIn contrast districts in Odisha with more green cover and water bodies are better able to cope they said Extreme heat broke all records in 2024 the hottest year on record in India and globally This year the country recorded its first heatwave on February 2728 much earlier than April 5 last yearSevere and frequent heatwaves are further burdening lowincome households in the country which often have poor access to water and cooling and testing the endurance of outdoor workers toiling in the searing sun forcing them to take frequent breaksStudies show India could lose the equivalent of 35 million fulltime jobs and experience a 45 per cent reduction in GDP by 2030Experts say outdoor workers pregnant women the elderly children and people with chronic health conditions are at higher risk of heat exhaustion and heatstrokeAccording to the World Health Organization more than 166000 people died as a result of heatwaves between 1998 and 2017In one of its fiercest heatwave spells since 2010 India logged over 48000 heatstroke cases and 159 heatrelated deaths last yearExperts say India is likely undercounting heatrelated deathsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason 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