Bracing For The Heat

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India recorded its hottest March in history this year, with extreme heat events claiming more lives each year. In response, cities like Ahmedabad have pioneered Heat Action Plans (HAPs) that have significantly reduced fatalities. These plans, tailored to local needs, aim to prevent heat-related deaths, with strategies ranging from early warnings to cool roof initiatives. Is your city prepared for the heat, or is it still waiting for action?

Pedestrians protecting themselves from the sun in Delhi, 2016 | Source:abcnews

This year, we witnessed the hottest March in India’s recorded history since 1901. There has been a 55% increase in deaths due to extreme heat in India between 2000-2004 and 2017-2021 (Lancet, 2022). Intense heat waves (4.5 C to 6.4 C above normal temperature) can be disastrous, causing various health impacts like heat stroke, heat stress and even death. With extreme heat events becoming more frequent, Heat Action Plans (HAPs) are being formulated at both the state and city levels by disaster management authorities and city governments, respectively.

Modeled Air Temperatures on April 27, 2022 | Source: NASA Earth Observatory

Air Temperature on April 27, 2022 as observed by NASA Earth Observatory

HAPs are a set of guidelines to create a framework for implementation, coordination and evaluation of measures that can manage negative impacts of heat in a particular region. Guidelines establish action plans for various strategies ranging from early warning, training healthcare professionals and community engagement to mitigation and long-term solutions.

India’s first HAP was formulated in Odisha in 1999 after the heat wave of 1998, in which nearly 2000 people died.

In 2016, the NDMA came up with a set of guidelines for states to set up effective heat action plans, following which many states have come up with their own heat action plans.

The first city-level HAP in India was developed in Ahmedabad by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation in collaboration with the US’ Georgia Institute of Technology in 2013 following a severe heatwave in 2010.

A study done in 2018 revealed that the Ahmedabad HAP was associated with a reduced death rate on hot days; the city avoided more than 1100 deaths each year after it was implemented.

It has since become a model for developing HAPs in other cities of India. Following Ahmedabad, cities like Nagpur, Hazaribagh and Surat also came up with their own HAPs.

Source: Cool Roofs Initiative

Cool Roofs Initiative in Ahmedabad as part of the 5th Heat Action Plan

City-based HAPs allow the formulation of specifically tailored action plans that may be more effective for long-term solutions. The NDMA also came up with a nationwide ‘cool roof challenge’ in 2021, encouraging cities to announce targets for installing cool roofs in preparation for the incoming heat waves. To know more, read.

Does your city have a Heat Action Plan?

• Yes
• No

Does your city need a Heat Action Plan?

• Yes
• No