Maharashtra heatstroke deaths: Protecting the vulnerable this summer

Source: The post is based on the article “Maharashtra heatstroke deaths: Protecting the vulnerable this summer” published in the Indian Express on 27th April 2023.

Syllabus: GS-3: Disaster Management.

Relevance: About the impact of heatstrokes.

News: Recently, fourteen people died from heatstroke while attending a government award function in an open space in Navi Mumbai. The IMD has predicted a hotter summer this year. So, India has to take steps to prevent many deaths from heat strokes this year.

What are heatstrokes, and what are their implications?

Note: In 2010, heat waves in Ahmedabad took more than 800 deaths. In response, Ahmedabad became the first city to start a threshold-based Heat Action Plan in 2013.

The IMD now predicts the temperature level for the next five days in more than 500 cities and all districts of India.

How can heat strokes be fatal?

About the history of heat strokes

Global level: Heat stroke deaths have plagued various armies for centuries. More recently, devastating heat waves occurred in Chicago in 1995 and the European heat wave in 2003.

Indian level: Traditionally, most cultures in India have words to describe heat stroke — such as “loo” in Hindi and other languages. As Indians are used to hot weather and the country has several other pressing tasks. So there has been a weak national commitment.

What are the ideal solutions for heat waves?

Prepare individual HAPs: The World Meteorological Organisation has declared that the past six years have been the hottest globally, indicating the increasing pace of global warming. Hence, it is imperative that all cities, districts and villages in India prepare for heat waves.

For this, each city and district should appoint a “heat officer” who will ensure that the heat action plan is prepared and implemented. The plan has to be revisited every year and revised when new features are required to protect people.

Role of local government: The local city or district governments have to take the historical temperatures of the cities and issue a red alert if it is in the 99th percentile, an orange alert if it is in the 95th percentile and above, and a yellow alert if is the 90th percentile and above.

Encourage people to carry water while going out and cover their heads or use an umbrella to prevent direct exposure to sunlight.

Long-term solutions: Long-term measures like the greening of cities by increasing the tree cover, painting roofs white (cool roofs) to reflect sunlight and heat, and use of low-energy cooling devices such as fans and coolers will also help to reduce the effect of increasing heat.

Prepare heat wave mortality data: India needs to correlate the daily all-cause mortality with daily temperatures for the last 15-20 years. India also needs to capture and analyse all-cause mortality and hospitalisation in every city and correlate it with daily maximum and minimum temperatures. This will inform authorities if mortality and morbidity are within the usual limits.

Overall, systematic steps are required to protect people from heat wave-related mortality and morbidity. This requires inter and intra-departmental coordination and top-level commitment.