Children chase a truck spraying water on a street in New Delhi on May 28, 2024Arun Sankar / AFP via Getty Images
Temperatures in India are rising and heat waves are becoming longer and more intense due to climate change. On May 29, it reached 52.9 degrees Celsius (ºC) in the capital, New Delhi, although the India Meteorological Department (IMD) is still checking whether the equipment that took the measurement was functioning properly. Whether confirmed or not, it is the third consecutive year that the country has been hit by an extreme heat wave in April and May. “There is strong evidence from our research that heatwaves are going to start earlier in the year and extend later into the season,” Krishna AchutaRao, from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, told Nature. Temperatures over the past three years have also been warmer than historical trends. According to a report published by the World Weather Attribution (WWA) initiative in May, climate change increases the likelihood of extreme temperatures 45-fold, representing a major risk to public health. A study by the Karolinska Institute, Sweden, analyzed temperature data for 10 cities in India from between 2008 and 2019, concluding that two consecutive days of intense heat could increase mortality by 14.7% over days with average temperatures (Nature and NDTV, May 29; Environment International, February).
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