As temperatures soar across India, at least 16,344 suspected heatstroke cases and 60 deaths have been reported since March 1st, Mint quoted data from the National Centre of Disease Control (NCDC) as saying.
According to the data quoted by Mint, since March 1st 32 people have succumbed to heatstroke, while 28 deaths are suspected to be heatstroke-related. The country has seen a significant surge in suspected heatstroke cases, totaling 16,344 since March, with 486 cases reported on May 22nd alone.
Large parts of India sweltered under a heat wave for the seventh day on the trot on Thursday, with the mercury soaring to 48.8 degrees Celsius in Rajasthan’s Barmer, the highest temperature recorded in the country this year so far.
“The new suspected heatstroke cases and deaths are reported every 24 hours, which is updated by the states/UTs across the country on a centralized platform while cumulative figures are since March 1,” Mint quoted sources in the ministry as saying.
“Considering the present heatwave scenario prevailing across the northern and central parts of the country, the Centre has issued a fresh advisory to all states/Union territories to ensure that all hospitals must be prepared to tackle health-related illness and hospitals should have the availability of adequate quantities of essential medicines, I.V. fluids, ice packs, ORS and all necessary equipment,” he told Mint on condition of anonymity.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for several northern and northwestern states, including Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, and Haryana, until May 28th. Specifically, “severe heatwave” conditions are forecasted in Delhi, most parts of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh until May 28th, with a red alert extended to west Uttar Pradesh from May 26th to May 28th.
Official data showed that at least 16 places in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh recorded maximum temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius or above on Thursday.
High night temperatures are considered dangerous because the body doesn’t get a chance to cool down. Increasing nighttime heat is more common in cities because of the urban heat island effect, in which metro areas are significantly hotter than their surroundings.
According to the World Health Organization, more than 1,66,000 people died as a result of heat waves between 1998 and 2017. India reported 3,812 deaths due to heat waves between 2015 and 2022, with Andhra Pradesh alone logging 2,419 fatalities, the government told Parliament in July last year. People are less productive during hot weather, and children struggle to learn.
According to a World Bank report, India could account for 34 million of the projected 80 million global job losses from heat stress-associated productivity decline by 2030. With 75 per cent of workers in India experiencing heat-related stress, lost labour from rising heat and humidity could result in a loss of up to 4.5 per cent of India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (equivalent to approximately USD 150-250 billion) by the end of this decade, according to a report by the McKinsey Global Institute.
With inputs from agencies.
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60 killed from heatstroke in India since March 1, over 16,000 cases reported so far
