Study warns of more heatwave-related deaths

A new report indicates India is poorly prepared to handle the increasing number of extreme heat waves in the future.

- JITENDRA CHOUBEY @ New Delhi

It claims the country primarily focuses on immediate responses to heat waves while long-term strategies remain scarce.

It warns that India may witness more deaths due to more frequent, intense, and prolonged heat waves in the coming years. The report is produced by the Sustainable Futures Collaborative (SFC), a non-profit based in New Delhi, and co-authored by scholars from King's College London, Harvard University, Princeton University, and the University of California, Berkeley.

"Many long-term measures must be implemented now, with urgency, to have a chance of preventing significant increases in mortality and economic damage in the coming decades," says Aditya Valiathan Pillai, a researcher at King's College London and co-author of the study.