33K deaths in India in '19 linked to heatstroke

A study shows India is among top South Asian countries in the list of heat-related deaths and disability in 2019.

-  JITENDRA CHOUBEY

Cases related to heatstroke-induced deaths and disabilities are linked to temperature changes driven by climate change globally. However, men are more affected than women.

In India, there were nearly 33,000 deaths from stroke attributable to non-optimal temperatures, 55% of which (roughly 18,000) were attributable to higher-than-optimal temperatures and 45% (roughly 15,000) to lower-thanoptimal temperatures, the researchers found.

Non-optimal temperatures are defined as the location-specific above (high temperature) or below (low temperature).

In 2019, there were over 5.2 lakh stroke deaths linked to non-optimal temperatures, the study, published in the journal Neurology, found.