BANGKOK • More Indian cities need to implement heat action plans that include text-message alerts and cooling stations, to minimise deaths and illnesses related to rising temperatures, climate change experts and human rights activists said yesterday.
At least 36 people have died from a heatwave this year, with the Indian capital Delhi posting its highest-ever temperature of 48 deg C, and temperatures in Churu in Rajasthan state hitting 51 deg C.
Cities experience higher temperatures because paved surfaces and the lack of tree cover cause "urban heat islands", said Mr Sayantan Sarkar, who helped implement India's first Heat Action Plan in Ahmedabad in 2013.
"Cities bear the brunt of a heatwave because they are so densely populated, and because the effects are more pronounced," Mr Sarkar told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "But not all cities have the capacity to implement the measures needed, and the lack of comprehensive medical records makes it harder to target vulnerable groups such as the homeless and migrant workers," he added.
Heatwaves in India typically occur in the pre-monsoon period from April to June.
Ahmedabad implemented its Heat Action Plan after a heatwave in 2010 caused more than 1,300 heat-related deaths.
The plan included an early warning system using electronic displays in public places and text messages, training medical personnel to recognise and respond to heat-related illnesses, as well as "cool roofs" that used reflective surfaces or coatings to reduce temperatures in low-income and informal housing areas.
Since its launch, the Heat Action Plan has helped prevent about 1,100 deaths each year in Ahmedabad, said a study published in the Journal of Environmental and Public Health last year.
India's National Disaster Management Authority issued guidelines in 2016 for heat action measures based on the Ahmedabad plan. They have since been adopted in more than a dozen states, said Mr Arup Kumar Srivastava, a heatwave expert at the authority.
"The casualties would be much higher were it not for the heat action plans that many cities have adopted," he said.
A critical feature of Ahmedabad's Heat Action Plan is checking on vulnerable populations including the homeless and slum dwellers.
This is particularly relevant in cities such as Delhi, which has one of the largest homeless populations in the country, said Ms Shivani Chaudhry, executive director of advocacy group Housing and Land Rights Network.
At least six homeless people probably died from the heat from May 1 to June 10 this year in Delhi, with several more deaths going unreported.
"Homeless persons are most vulnerable to the heat, as the majority live outdoors and do not have access to adequate shelter, drinking water and healthcare," said Ms Chaudhry.
Delhi government officials said in April that they were preparing an action plan to minimise the impact of extreme weather conditions, including heatwaves, which will be ready next year.
REUTERS
