Snet 174 Heat Wave.pdf - ReliefWeb

southasiadisasters.net October 20182

ABOUT THIS ISSUE

In the past decade, manycountries of Asia have been

repeatedly struck by extremeheat and heat waves. Manyscientists have attributed thistrend of rising heat waveincidents to climate change.Extreme heat events arebecoming more frequent andsevere because as the worldcontinues to warm due tohuman emissions ofgreenhouse gases from theburning of fossil fuels.

This issue ofSouthasiadisasters.net is titled"Rising Risk of Heat Waves inAsia". It highlights not onlythe incidences and impacts ofheat waves in Asia but alsoall the scientific andgovernance innovationsdesigned to mitigate theirdamage. While instances ofheat waves are on the riseacross the world, Asia inparticular seems to be reelingunder an intense heat wave.According to the meteorologistEtienne Kapikian, at leastseven Asian countries havealready set monthly hightemperature records at the endof March 2018.

All this scientific andempirical evidence points tothe inconvenient truth thatthe incidence and intensity ofheat waves will increase acrossAsian countries in the comingyears. Therefore, there is aneed to address this rising riskor mitigate its adverseimpacts. This issue ofSouthasiadisasters.net takesstock of the best practices ingovernance systems (heatwave action plans), earlywarning and healthpreparedness among others tomitigate the adverse impactsof heat waves in Asia.

– Kshitij Gupta

When a heat wave hits, ourinstinct is to stay indoors, under

the fan or in the air-conditioning.However, millions of India's workingpoor do not have that choice. Streetvendors, waste pickers, cart-pullers,and rickshaw drivers are among themany kinds of self-employed workersthat earn their living on the street. Formany, the day they do not work is theday they do not eat. Their workcontinues in blistering heat, under thescorching summer sun.

Heat waves put both their lives andtheir livelihoods at risk. Exhaustion anddehydration affect both the body andthe mind, causing headaches, dizziness,or nausea as well as confusion,irritability or delirium. Producevendors are particularly vulnerable tothe heat. Fruit and vegetables areperishable so every day is an anxiety-ridden race against the clock. To makematters worse, when city temperaturesrise, customers are sparse and theirearnings, like their produce, is at risk.In addressing the public health andpoverty crises brought on by heatwaves, cities must consider the following:

1. Investing in Urban TreesThe value of trees extends far beyondaesthetics; trees are vital to the publichealth of a city. During the summer,trees cool both the ground and the air.Trees with wide canopies provide alarge shaded area where the sun's rayscannot hit the ground directly, therebyreducing the amount of heat theground absorbs. Trees also transpirewater as they grow, releasing vapor

and cooling the surrounding air. Inaddition to regulating temperatures,trees also filter air pollution and absorbatmospheric carbon dioxide.

2. Protecting Open SpacesTemperatures are higher in urbanareas, as compared to rural areas,because of what is known as the heatisland effect. As buildings and roadsreplace vegetation and open land, thesun beats down on rooftops, roads andpavements. Impermeable surfaces likesteel, concrete and asphalt trap andrelease heat-all contributing to theheat wave. Vegetative cover andpermeable surfaces such as soil canmitigate the heat island effect. Greenroofs, city parks, waterbodies, andbackyard gardens provide space thatshield against the sun's rays.

3. Supporting Vernacular ArchitectureStreet-based workers employ diversestrategies to withstand the swelteringheat. Many chaiwalas and vendorsconstruct makeshift awnings byattaching old sarees or wet jute clothto lampposts and trees. For producevendors, shade not only protectsagainst heat stroke and exhaustion butalso extends the life of their fruits andvegetables, thereby protecting theirtake-home earnings. Vernaculararchitecture of this kind can protectboth health and business, ultimatelysaving lives. Cities have an opportunityto support its citizens in their efforts tomake the built environment livable tothose who use it.

– Maya Potter,Fulbright-Nehru Research Fellow

HEAT WAVE IMPACT

Heat Waves and StreetVendors: What Cities Can Do

HEAT WAVE IMPACT

Heat Waves and StreetVendors: What Cities Can Do

southasiadisasters.netOctober 2018 3

CLIMATE SMART DEVELOPMENT

Top Three Achievements of India to become"Weather Ready and Climate Smart"

Weather and climateinformation is vital to public

well-being and safety, food security,water resources and health. Duringthe past many decades, high impactweather events have taken manylives and inflicted huge damagescausing enormous economichardship. Global warming andclimate change cause an increase inthe frequency and intensity of suchextreme events. Frequency of heavyrainfall events and severe heat waveshas increased over India during thelast 3 decades. Early warningsystems and disaster risk reductionmeasures are therefore important forboosting the community resilience.Climate services on the other handcan inform decisions on both climatechange mitigation and adaptation.

The Ministry of Earth Sciences hasthe mandate to provide accurate andtimely services for all events fromnow-casting (next few hours) to sub-seasonal and seasonal weather andlonger-term climate predictions toall users. Ministry over the past 10years has been building up requiredinfrastructure and capability forimproving the services. This includea) strengthening of observationalnetwork (over land, sea and air); b)installing the state-of-the-art weatherand climate prediction systemsbased on coupled models; c)acquiring faster computingresources; and d) investing in humanresources development. Ministry hasthe computing capacity of about 8.0petaflop, which is the best in thecountry and fourth best among theweather prediction centers in theworld. The dramatic reduction in thelives lost due to high impact weatherevents in the last few years has beenlargely attributed to the significantincrease in accuracy of weather

forecasts and warnings andimproved coordination with disastermanagement authorities.

The Major Three Achievements Madeby the Ministry on Weather andClimate Services are given below:1. Agrometeorological Services

Farmers make use of weatherforecasts and warnings forplanning the operations likesowing, irrigation, applicationof fertilizer and pesticide,harvest and protection of cropsfrom weather disasters. TheMinistry in collaboration withthe Indian Council ofAgricultural Research (ICAR)provides the Agromet AdvisoryServices (AAS) for the benefit offarmers. This includes 5-dayweather forecasts issued onevery Tuesday and Friday. Theservices carried out at 130 agro-met zones (cluster of 4-6districts) now have beensuccessfully extended to thedistrict level and operatedacross 608 districts of thecountry. Currently, about 22.4million farmers are receiving

crop specific agro-meteorological advisories invernacular languages. The thirdparty assessment by theNational Council of AppliedEconomic Research (NCAER) onthe agromet services providedby the ministry concluded thatthe annual economic benefit forthe farmers cultivating 4principal crops (Wheat, Rice,Sugarcane and Cotton) was Rs42,000 Crore in 2015. IMD isnow planning to provide theseservices extended to block levelthrough 660 district Agrometfield units being set up at ICARKrishi Vigyan Kendras by 2019.These improved services withadditional climate and soilinformation for rain-fedagriculture and irrigatedagriculture of the country areexpected to benefit farmerssubstantially and contribute tothe Government initiative ondoubling the income of farmers.

2. Early Warning Systems forHigh Impact Weather EventsThe quality of weather servicesby the Ministry has shown

http://citiscope.org/story/2017/lessons-and-challenges-indian-cities-step-planning-heat-waves


HEAT WAVES AND HEALTH

Public Health Impact of Heat Waves in IndianCitiesGlobally, the effect and burden

due to climate change isdistributed unequally and oftenunpredictably. Urban cities, due totheir economic and socialadvancement, face a high risk dueto the variability andunpredictability of changing climate.Anthropogenic activities haveincreased the global averagetemperature by more than half since1950's1 and it is predicted that globalmean temperature will rise by 5.5oCby the end of this century.2 The citywill witness increased frequency andintensity of heat wave- a period ofsustained high temperature.According to IMD, a heat wavecondition is announced whenmaximum temperature remains tobe at 45oC.3 Episodes of extremetemperature, such as heat waves

Nina and climate predictionproducts.

Ministry has the mandate of doingresearch on basics of climate change.A State-of-the-art Earth SystemModel (ESM) has been developed bythe scientists at the Centre forClimate Change Research (CCCR),Indian Institute of TropicalMeteorology (IITM) Pune. Thismodel will be further used todevelop future regional climatechange scenarios at 25 km resolutionand conduct climate impactassessment studies. The ESM will bethe first climate model from Indiato contribute to the forthcomingsixth IPCC climate changeassessment process. The center willcome out with a detailed climatechange assessment report for Indiaby early 2019.

– Dr. Madhavan Nair Rajeevan,Secretary to the Government of India,

Ministry of Earth Sciences, New Delhi,India

appreciable improvementsduring the past 4 years. Therehave been noticeableimprovements achieved in skillsof forecasts for high impactweather events like heavyrainfall and tropical cyclones.This is evident with reference torecent tropical cyclones, Phailin,Hudhud and Vardah and heavyrainfall events in Uttarakhand,Jammu and Kashmir andChennai. For the recent cyclone,Vardah, which had caused severedamages in the city of Chennaiand neighborhood, accuratepredictions were providedalmost 3 days in advance,helping to save thousands oflives. The loss of lives duringthe last 4 years due to tropicalcyclones has reduced to lessthan hundred as compared to thethousands during the previousdecade. The track forecast errorduring 2014-17 has been 89, 142,207 km against 125, 202, 268 km

during 2007-13 for 24, 48 and 72hrs lead period respectively Theperiod during 2014-17 registereda decrease in track forecast errorby 29, 30, and 23% as comparedto 2007-13 for 24, 48 and 72 hourslead period respectively.

3. Climate ServicesClimate services are very usefulfor various sectors likeagriculture, water resources,disaster management, health etc.Ministry has been providingvarious climate service productsto various user agencies. TheNational Climate Centre atPune has been now recognizedas the Regional Climate Centreby the World MeteorologicalOrganisation (WMO) forproviding regional climateservices to south Asiancountries. The center is nowissuing monthly climatebulletins providing details ofclimate anomalies over theregion, status of El Nino and La

were experienced in Orissa in 1998which caused 2048 deaths and inAhmedabad and Andhra Pradesh in2015 which killed 1,334 and 2500people respectively.4 Similar bolts ofheat waves were also witnessed inChicago in 1996 in Europe in 2003.5,6

Increased rate of hospitalization isseen due heat related morbidity andmortality. Direct effects includes likedehydration, exhaustion, fainting,heat cramps, heat stroke and indirecteffects like cardio-respiratory illness.Vulnerability to heat increases withage, disability and existing illness,type of occupation like daily wagelabor, transportation, etc., socioeconomic status.7,8,9

During dry spells, urban areasgenerally experience 10oC rise in

night as compared to the adjoiningareas or rural areas due to 'UrbanHeat Island' effect; an effect causedby trapping of heat by the materialssuch as buildings, pavements duringthe day time and releasing the sameat the night time.10,11 The intensityof the effect is directly proportionalto city size, population, unplannedurbanization, vehicular movementand industrial growth and indirectlyproportional to the green cover andopen land mass. A study byMcMicheal et al. in 2008 in Delhialong with other international cities,said that for every 1oC rise intemperature above 29oC, there is3.94% increase in mortality.12

The impact of heat related healthoutcomes in cities are inter sectoral.Incidences of vector borne diseases


Street food vendors surviving through the heat wave.

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will rise due to congestion and hightemperature promoting breedingand maturation of pathogen.13 Waterscarcity and food insecurity will becommon with increasingtemperature which will further pushup the levels of under nutrition andother micronutrient relateddeficiencies. Greenhouse Gases(GHGs) like carbon dioxide, nitrousoxide, etc. released due to highdemand of mobility andindustrialization acts, heat trappingagent; further causing air pollutionand increasing the city temperature.The public health system is alreadyresource strapped to deal withexisting health issues, the adversitiescaused by extreme temperaturefurther adds the burden.

By 2050, urbanization is expected toincrease the urban dwellers by 6million. Establishing effective earlywarning signals with trans-regionalco-operation, setting up effectivehealth surveillance systems,restoring natural resources canmitigate impending extreme eventsand also factor in an adaptationconsciousness.14,15

In conclusion, India will have toevolve a multi-dimensional domainexpert co-ordination to ensure thatglobal policy frameworks trickledown to the last mile and ensure lifeand livelihoods are protected fromheat waves.References:1. Core Writing Team, R.K. Pachauri

and L.A. Meyer. Climate Change2014: Synthesis Report. [Internet].Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change;[cited 2018 Mar16]. Available from https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/syrSYR_AR5_FINAL_full_wcover.pdf

2. Mazidiyasni O, Aghakouchak A,Davis S, Madadgar S, Mehran A,Ragno E et al. Increasing probabilityof mortality during Indian heatwaves. Sci. Adv.2007; 3: 1-5.

3. Odisha State Disaster ManagementAuthority: Heat Wave[Internet].Odisha State DisasterManagement Authority; [cited 2018

Mar 15]. Available from: http://www.osdma.org/ViewDetails.aspx?vchglinkid=GL002&vchplinkid=PL008

4. Majra J, Gur A. Climate Changeand Health: Why should India beconcerned. Indian J OccupEnviron Med.2009;13(1):11-16.

5. Semenza J, Rubin C, Falter K,Selanikio J, Flanders W, Howe Het al. Heat related death duringthe July 1995 heat wave inChicago. N Engl J Med1996;335:84-90.

6. D'lppoliti D, Michelozzi P, MarineC, de'Donato F, Menne B,Katsouyanni K etal.The impact ofheat waves on mortality in 9European cities: results from theEuroHEAT project. EnvironmentalHealth. 2010; 9:37.

7. Akhtar R. Climate change andhealth and heat wave mortality inIndia. Global EnvironmentalResearch. 2007; 11: 51-57.

8. Azhar G, Malvankar D, Sharma A,Rajiva A, Dutta P, Jaiswal A et al.Heat- related mortality in India:Excess all- cause mortalityassociated with the 2010Ahmedabad Heat Wave.Plosone.2014; 9(3):1-9.

9. Bush K, Luber G, Kotha R, DhaliwalR, Kapil V, Pasucal M et al. Impactsof climate change on public healthin India: Future ResearchDirections. Environmental HealthPerspectives. 2011; 199(6):765-770.

10. Haines A, Kovats R, Lendrum D,Corvalan C. Climate change andhuman health: Impacts,vulnerability and public health.

Journal of the royal institute ofpublic health. 2006; 123; 585-596.

11. Kovats S, Akhtar R. Climate,climate change and human healthin Asian cities. InternationalInstitute for Environment andDevelopment(IIED).2008;20(1):165-175.

12. McMichael AJ, Wilkinson P, KovatsRS, Pattenden S, Hajat S,Armstrong B, et al. 2008.International study of temperature,heat and urban mortality: the"ISOTHURM" project. Int JEpidemiol 37:1121-1131.

13. Hunter P. Climate Change andwaterborne and vector-bornedisease. Journal of AppliedMicrobiology.2003; 94, 37S-46S.(vector)

14. Yamamtoto Y. Measures to MitigateUrban Heat Islands. Science andtechnology trend. 2006; 18; 65-83.(UHIE)

15. Nuruzzaman M. Urban Heat Island:Causes, Effects and MitigationMeasures -A Review. InternationalJournal of Environmental monitoringand analysis. 2015; 3(2);67-73.International Journal ofEnvironmental Monitoring andAnalysis. Vol. 3, No. 2, 2015, pp.67-73 International Journal ofEnvironmental Monitoring andAnalysis. Vol. 3, No. 2, 2015, pp.67-7

– Vaishali Paste, Public HealthSpecialist, and Edmond Fernandes,

CEO, Center For Health andDevelopment (CHD), Karnataka, India


HEAT WAVES AND URBAN RESILIENCE

Heat Wave Action Planning in Cities: A Viewfrom Gujarat

IntroductionA Heat Wave is a period ofabnormally high temperatures,more than the normal maximumtemperature that occurs during thesummer season in the North-Western parts of India. Heat Wavestypically occur between March andJune, and in some rare cases evenextend till July. The extremetemperatures and resultantatmospheric conditions adverselyaffect people living in these regionsas they cause physiological stress,sometimes resulting in death.

ReasonsA heat wave is declared when thetemperature rises by 5-6oC thanaverage maximum temperature, or

actual maximum temperatureremains 45oC or more irrespectiveof normal maximum temperature.Higher daily peak temperatures andlonger, more intense heat waves arebecoming increasingly frequentglobally due to climate change. Indiatoo is feeling the impact of climatechange in terms of increased instancesof heat waves which are gettingintense in nature with each passingyear, and have a devastating impacton human health thereby increasingthe number of heat wave casualties.

ImpactsThe health impacts of Heat Wavestypically involve dehydration, heatcramps, heat exhaustion and/or heatstroke. Fatigue, weakness, dizziness,

headache, nausea, vomiting, musclecramps and sweating are observedin even healthy persons. Heat Stokeis considered when bodytemperatures reaches to 40oC i.e.104oF or more along with delirium,seizures or coma. This is apotentially fatal condition.

Heat waves could have other direeffects including disastrous cropfailures, deaths from hyperthermia,widespread power outages due toincreased use of air conditioning,wildfires (often when a heat wave iscombined with a drought), otherfires as power transformers explodeunder the heat and humidity,damage to infrastructure (roads,highways and water lines), etc.

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Street vendor selling seasonal summer vegetables.


Gujarat – Ahmedabad situationOne of the major reasons for "HeatIsland" effect in urban areas in Indiais the rapid and unplanneddevelopment of built-up space inmajor cities. For example, inAhmedabad city in last 20 yearsbetween 1996-2016, built-up areashas increased by 132%, whereas treecover has reduced from 24% to 7%,which is the main reason ofincreasing heat impacts in hightemperature days of summermonths. Also there is sharp decreasein water bodies in and around city.The same situation is prevailing inother major cities of Gujarat andIndia. Another important thing island use change for increasing heatimpacts in cities. In Ahmedabad 7%of land was built up in 1990 whichhas increased to 16.34% in 2010 andby 2024 it is expected to be 38% ofland under building. Along withbuilt up areas, size and intensity ofroad network is increasing day byday. BRTS has taken space in majorroads of the city, which has impactedon road sides, sideways or footpath,which have been asphalted toincrease the size of roads and toaccommodate more vehicles. Treesnearby the main roads are cut orchopped to expand the infrastructurework and improve the trafficsituations. Footpaths have beenpaved along the road sided, in andaround the residential andcommercial complexes, parking, etc.which has reduced the space forgreen cover and chance for waterpercolation in monsoon season. Allthese cumulative impacts areimportant reasons behind theheating up of urban areas more ascompared to other parts of the State.The phenomenal growth ofpopulation from 2 million to 7million is impacting the availabilityof per capita natural resources ofAhmedabad city as well. As per theState Government's forest data, in2011 trees density has reduced to 11tree / 100 persons, and in present2018 scenario if study is conductedagain it would have reduced further.

The same type of situation is foundin other major Indian cities likeBhopal, Hyderabad, Bangalore,Nagpur, Bhubaneshwar, Bengaluru,etc.

ResponsesGovernment at different levels isconstantly promoting new andinnovative ways to control theenvironmental conditions within thecity, but population increase,migration from rural to urban andrapid urbanisation areanthropogenic reasons of change inenvironmental conditions of the city.Over and above these reasons theimpact of global warming ispressing further ecological stressover the city areas.

The city administration ofAhmedabad (AMC - AhmedabadMunicipal Corporation) hasdeveloped the heat action plan,which has given very encouragingresults in extreme heat scenarios.Other cities have followedAhmedabad model in controllingsimilar situations in city level heatwave management. Indian Instituteof Public Health - Gandhinagar(IIPHG) and NRDC have beeninstrumental in development andimplementation of heat action planin Ahmedabad. AMC has alsodeveloped mobile based applicationfor dissemination of early warningof air quality as well as heat waveinformation. AMC is also providingfree saplings of trees to citizen ontheir door step with help of socialmedia and mobile application.However, despite severalgovernment initiatives publicparticipation and capacity buildingof the common citizens can still bevastly improved.

The Ahmedabad Heat Action planserves to focus attention on thoseindividuals who are most at riskduring heat waves, including slumcommunities, outdoor workers,elderly and children. The Plan alsofocuses on individuals and

organizations, such as Urban HealthCentres (UHCs) and link workers,who frequently work with at-riskpopulations and can provide earlydiagnosis of heat-related illnessesand preliminary treatment.

Community EngagementIn fighting with such extreme heatsituation the role of individuals,community groups, and the mediais central. Individuals can takespecific preventative steps to protectthemselves, their families, and theircommunities from harmful heatwaves including learning about earlysigns of heat exhaustion, limitingheavy work during extreme heat,drinking water, staying out of thesun; wearing light clothing, checkingon neighbours, and informing theirfellow community members abouthow to keep cool and protectthemselves from heat. The media isvital in spreading the word aboutthe harm heat poses to health, andprotecting people against dangerousheat waves. The media plays anessential awareness-building role bysharing news about health threats,and increased public protection byrunning ads and providing localresources information.

ConclusionAt the same time the civic authorityand the health department are alsoparticipating actively to reduce theimmediate casualties, which hasreduced the human loss during heatwaves. Ahmedabad heat action planis considered to be a very successfuladaptation initiative in heat relateddisasters not only in India but acrossthe world. However, to mitigatesuch situation citizens andauthorities will have to focus ongreening the city through verticalgardens, green belts, terrace gardensand such options to reduce thefurther concretization of our cities. - Shwetal Shah, Technical Advisor –

Climate Change Department,Government of Gujarat, Gandhinagar,

Gujarat, India


HEAT WAVE ACTION PLANS

Research Issues on Heat Waves in India

After the mid-1990s, heat waveshave been a big killer in India

with the most recent report fromCSE declaring it as the secondbiggest killer among all naturalcalamities. During heat waves, thedeadly combination of heat andhumidity causes hyperthermia andaccordingly, some of the coastal ornear coastal states like Odisha,Andhra Pradesh, Telengana, Gujarat,etc. have been bearing the brunt ofthe heat waves impacts. Odisha andGujarat have activated Heat HealthAction Plans to adapt to this extremesituation and other stategovernments are making elaborateplans on similar lines to control thesituation in their regions. Review ofHeat Action Plans makes it clear thatgovernment actions are tunedtowards minimizing the humanhealth impacts only through reducedexposure or providing medicalfacilities in case somebody suffersheat stress. The question comeswhether this initiative is enough? Bynow, the state of Odisha has beendoing such adaptive activities formore than 10 years and the questioncomes whether the Government of

Odisha has been able to fully controlthe heat wave mortalities in thestate? Though mortalities have comedown in spite of increasing heatwave days, large number of deathsare still occurring.

Studies of informal sector poor urbanworkers show such people are takingthe risk of working under scorchingsun during heat wave days due toeconomic compulsions, even thoughthey are fully aware of the dos anddon'ts during heat waves as advisedby the state government. This mayexplain the situation of why peopleare still dying in the state in spite ofso many years of awarenessgeneration and heat action plan. In-depth studies need to be initiated toexplore why deaths are stilloccurring and what extra work needsto be done? Is there a need foreconomic incentives like differentialwage rate as people can work onlyfor less number of hours or forelectricity subsidy as electricity useis essential to adapt to heat andsubsidy can reduce the burden onpeople? These issues need to beexamined carefully to bring out

policy options for poor people whohave little resources with them toadapt to such extremes on their own.At the moment, Heat Action Plansare formulated on the line of suchactivities in developed countries andthey need to be more orientated tothe realities of a poor economy.

Heat waves impose multiple impactson the society other than the healthimpacts. Agriculture, livestock,poultry, and fishery are some of theother sectors facing high impacts andthere is an urgent need forsystematic assessment of theseimpacts to design policyinterventions for these sectors. Heatwaves are not declared as a naturalcalamity in India and heat wavelosses are not covered by any typeof insurances whereas cold wavesare. Other than health effects, lossesfrom heat waves are invisible andattrition is difficult. Unless studiesare done and economic losses arecarefully measured, arguing forinsurance cover will be difficult.

– Saudamini Das, NABARD ChairProfessor, Institute of Economic

Growth, Delhi, India


COUNTRY RISK PROFILE

Heat Wave As A New Norm in Vietnam

Vietnam has usually experiencedtemperature variation between

21oC to 28oC during the dry summerseason.1 However, last year, thenorthern parts of Vietnamexperienced temperature in excess of40oC, with a peak of 42.5oC recordedin central Hanoi, nearly breaking thecity's 1926 record of 42.8oC.2

This extreme heat affected not onlyVietnam but several regions incountries such as the USA, WesternEurope and North Africa, all locatedin the Northern Hemisphere.Climate researchers now call'simultaneous heat waves are thenew normal', attributing theincreasing heat wave severity andfrequency to climate change.3

Vietnam's long line of coastal areas,degradation of environmentalamenities, and rapid urbanisation

have exacerbated the effect of heatwaves. According to a UNDP paper4,while Vietnam has experienced anincrease in mean annualtemperature of 0.4oC since 1960 theexpected increase is 0.8oC-2.7oC by2060. Additionally, instances of heatwaves observed in Vietnam is risingnationwide, especially in the centralregions.5

Records from Viet Nam NationalHospital of Pediatrics in Ha Noi in2007 show the hospital has beentreating about 1,500–1,700 childrenper day, 30 per cent of whom arehospitalised with illnesses relatingto the hot weather6. Power outagesbecause of increasing demand anddegradation of underground watersources have aggravated not onlydirect health consequences, but alsoled to a reduction of production inthose sectors, particularly the

agricultural sector, where workersoperate in extreme heat conditions,under direct sunlight or in poorlyventilated workplaces.

Well-off citizens use air-conditioners,avoid going outside under the sunor go to the water park to cool-off.Authorities asked the relevantsupplying company to take allpossible measures such as mobiliseadditional water container trucks,speed up the construction ofelectricity plants to supply adequatelevels of fresh tap water and ensureno power cuts, especially on days ofextreme heat. 'Ensuring that nohouseholds are without water is the mosturgent tasks' – said Minister Dung.For outdoor workers, or those inpoorly ventilated and constructedbuildings, who have little bargainingpower, the chances are slim.

Research from COHED (The Centerfor Community Health andDevelopment), Vietnam suggest thatknowledge and awareness ofprecautions for dealing with heatstress remains low.7 Additionally,current labour laws do not provideadequate protection for workers.The risk of heat stress is exacerbatedby a lack of health insurance andsocial protection.

While authorities are beginning torecognize that heat waves present aworsening health challenge, theyhave not yet acknowledged these as'disaster' events, because possibly theimpacts of these episodes are notvisibly as destructive as other'traditional' disasters in Vietnamsuch as flood or storm. The strategyto tackle heat waves, and build aresilient community, thus, remainslimited to already affected areas suchConstruction site workers in Da Nang stop to drink water and keep hydrated.


HEAT WAVES IN PHILIPPINES

Heating Island Paradise: PhilippineTemperature Rises

While the Philippines welcomesas many as at least 20

typhoons every year- some of themvery destructive-it is also a well-known fact that the dry months(March–May) with less than averagerainfall can be extremely hot. Monthsand days in some distinct locations(e.g., Tuguegarao City in northernLuzon and Cabanatuan City incentral Luzon, but also in Pres.Rodrigo Duterte's Davao) could heatup to more than 40 degrees Celsius,effectively forbidding agriculturalactivities, causing some deaths, andforcing people to head for beaches,malls or anywhere the shade canminimize so-called "heat index".March-when the temperature beginsto climb--is also the month whenmost fires occur, razing downcommunities with houses madefrom light materials. Only the onset

as Delta Mekong Rivers and thecentral regions, but not yet expandedto cities and urban areas.

As Vietnam is a signatory of the UNFramework Convention on ClimateChange, the Kyoto Protocol, and theParis Agreement on ClimateChange, Vietnam clearly needs aholistic and comprehensiveapproach to analyse and tackle thecross-sectoral problems andconsequences. Applying adaptivemeasures to enhance capacity ofresidents, increasing awarenessamong employers and laborers,integrating city planning inaddressing disasters, and enhancingcollaborations between differentdepartments are suggestivesolutions that Vietnam can considerin tackling this new type of

of the rainy season from thesouthwest monsoon—sometime inJune—will ease the drought spell.

The Philippines, together with a fewother countries, "will face more than300 potentially lethal heat wave days

'disaster'. Experiences learning andsharing with countries which facesimilar situations and have built richexperiences in the field such as India,Australia, etc. can encourageadopting best available practices.

– Thao Do,IDS, Sussex, Vietnam

References:1. Wikipedia. (2018). Climate in

Vietnam. Accessed at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam#Climate.

2. Al Jazeera. (2017). Heatwave hitmuch of Asia earlier thanexpected. Accessed at https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/06/heatwaves-hit-asia-earlier-expected-170607094644901.html

3. Berwyn, B. (2017). Simultaneouswidespread global heat waves arethe new norm. Pacific Standard.Accessed at https://psmag.com/environment/so-yeah-these-heat-

waves-are-basically-the-new-normal

4. McSweeney, C., New, M. &Lizcano, G. (2012). UNDPClimate Change Country Profiles:Vietnam. Accessed at http://country-profiles.geog.ox.ac.uk/.

5. Opitz-Stapleton, S. and Hawley,K. (2014). Da Nang Vietnam:Heat Stress and Climate Change -Policy Brief. Institute for Socialand Environmental Transition-International (ISET).

6. VietnamNews. (2014). Heatwavehits Hanoi with recordtemperatures. http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/society/103239/heat-wave-hits-hanoi-with-record-temperatures.html

7. Opitz-Stapleton, S. (2014). DaNang Vietnam: Climate ChangeImpacts on Heat Stress by 2050 -Summary Report. Institute forSocial and EnvironmentalTransition-International (ISET).

This file photo shows informal settlers' homes (foreground) dwarfed by highrisebuildings in the background near the port of Manila.


Source: World Bank Climate Change Knowledge Portal, 2018.

each year under the business-as-usual emissions trajectory, known asRCP 8.5."1 As this has happened, carand cab aircons overheat, waterreservoirs dry up, farm irrigationstops, rice yield drops promptingmassive importation. This is tied tothe El Niño phenomenon that delaysthe rainy season and also cuts itshort.

Studies indicate that this is all dueto climate change as countries, evensignatories to promises to bringdown temperature rise by minisculedegrees Celsius, succumb toincreasingly longer heat wavedurations. Luzon and Mindanaohave been identified as having morethan 200 and 300 heat wave days,respectively, and so-called "deadlyheat conditions" will be around upto the year 2050. However, in 2013,the state weather agency calledPhilippine Atmospheric,Geophysical and Astronomical

Services Administration (PAGASA)declined to call 35 degree Celsiustemperature conditions back then asheat wave. As "easterlies, warm,humid winds" blew from the Pacificand heated the eastern section of thearchipelago, PAGASA also projected"isolated rain showers andthunderstorms" seemingly to assuagepublic fears of worse weather.

Not so much–or inspite of--thetemperature, it is the "heat index"which could really be verydangerous specially to people withheart conditions when it rises to 51degrees Celsius as it did in NuevaEcija province on 9th April 2018. Inmid-April 2016, for consecutivedays, this province experienced over50 degrees Celsius heat index, andrecurred in May the following year,with dire consequence on waterbuffalo production therein.Tuguegarao shares Nueva Ecija'sgreat weather misfortune.

Other countries have plans to dealwith heat waves. India's disastermanagement agency has some, sodoes the US. The Philippines can usestudies like this which shows effectsof temperature rather than heatwaves across sexes and age groups,but it may be too technical to beuseful at all for specificinterventions. The country worksmainly with addressing climatechange-related commitments andactions and with releasing manualsfor disaster risk reduction education.

In more direct ways, peoplethemselves try to address the heatindex and heat wave concerns,suggesting what to do, and at leastone UN agency focuses on the mostvulnerable. Somehow, "Lucifer' heatwaves have to be met head on.

– Rolando Talampas, Asian Center,University of the Philippine Diliman,

Quezon City, Philippines

1 https://www.rappler.com/science-nature/environment/173433-study-global-warming-cap-heatwaves


HEAT WAVE MITIGATION

Heat Wave Action Plan – Ahmedabad

South Asia has been identified asone of the most vulnerable

regions in the world exposed to theimpacts of climate change. Thecurrent heat wave is one suchmanifestation of the adverse impactsof climate change on the region. Heatwaves are not categorized asdisasters yet. However, theincreasing incidence of heat wavesand their impacts on human health,agriculture and livelihoods hascompelled governments to take noteof this rising threat.

Climate change is leading to anincrease in average temperaturesand increased possibilities of severeheat waves. Extreme heat can leadto dangerous, even deadly, healthconsequences, including heat stressand heatstroke. In addition to theheat, the citizens are exposed to poorair quality, which is a commonproblem this time of year. The cityof Ahmedabad had a major heatwave in May 2010, there was large

rise in daily mortality in 2010coinciding with the heat wave. Thisled to 1,344 additional deathsregistered in the city during themonth of May.1

The 2010 heat wave was a wakeupcall that intergovernmental agencyaction, preparedness, andcommunity outreach was needed tosave lives. Rising to this challengeof climate change and increasing heatwaves, the Ahmedabad MunicipalCorporation (AMC) is working toprepare health systems and residentsagainst dangerous heat waves. Thefirst Heat Action Plan (HAP or Plan)was prepared in 2013 by the AMCwith help from national andinternational academic experts andlearning from global best practiceson early warning systems and heatadaptation. Ahmedabad launched afirst-of-its-kind Heat Action Plan,making it the first city in South Asiato create a comprehensive earlywarning system and preparedness

plan for extreme heat events fuelledby climate change. Each year theAMC and partners modify andprepare an updated Heat ActionPlan.2

Therefore, the 2017 heat wave planadopted comprehensive earlywarning system and preparednessplan for extreme heat events inAhmedabad. The plan representedimmediate and longer-term actionsto increase preparedness,information-sharing, and responsecoordination to reduce the healthimpacts of extreme heat onvulnerable populations. The planwas inclusive of four key strategies:

1. To build public awareness andcommunity outreach:Disseminating public messageson how to protect people againstextreme heat through mediaout lets and informationalmaterials such as pamphlets andadvertisements on heat stressprevention.

2. To utilize early warning systemand inter agency coordination:Alerting governmentalagencies, the Met Centre, healthofficials and hospitals,emergency responders, localcommunity groups, and mediaoutlets of forecasted extremetemperatures through formalcommunication channels.

3. To build capacity among healthcare professionals: providingtrainings focus on primarymedical officers and otherparamedical staff, andcommunity health staff so theycan effectively prevent and

1 http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0091831#abstract02 https://www.nrdc.org/sites/default/files/ahmedabad-heat-action-plan-2017.pdf

Temperature and all-cause mortality correlation during the 2010 heat wave inAhmedabad as compared to 2009 and 2011.


manage heat-related cases so asto reduce mortality andmorbidity.

4. Promoting adaptive measuresto reduce heat exposure:Increasing outreach andcommunication on preventionmethods, access to potabledrinking water and coolingspaces during extreme heatdays. Collaboration with non-governmental organizationswas also identified as a meansto expand outreach andcommunication with the city'smost at-risk communities.

The Ahmedabad model to counterheat wave effects has had animpressive start and the mostpositive impact has been on streetvendors, casual labourers,construction workers, traffic police

Selling water bottle on road side during hot summer afternoon's.

and AMC staff and schoolchildren.The most vulnerable populationshave been carefully identifiedthrough on-the-ground studies, focusgroups, interviews, and workshopsthat considered factors affecting heatexposure, susceptibility to heat-related illness, and adaptivecapacity. Hence, the Heat ActionPlan is tailored to help the city's at-risk residents cope with rising heat.Ahmedabad's Heat Action Plandescribes both immediate andlonger-term actions to increasepreparedness, information-sharing,and response coordination to reducethe health effects of heat onvulnerable populations. It includes,preventative training and awarenessbuilding for medical professionalsand slum community outreachworkers. Under the plan the heat-health protection trainings would

also be provided for school children,outdoor workers, and othervulnerable groups. The plan includescommunications outreach, such as anearly warning system that willimmediately alert the public ofimpending heat waves, thedistribution of multilingualpamphlets, and long-termawareness-building ad campaigns.Apart from this, there would becoordinated action by governmentagencies at the municipal, state, andnational levels to ensure successfulimplementation of the preparednessplan and warning system. Impressedwith the Ahmedabad model, civicbodies in Nagpur and Bhubaneswarhave also launched a similarinitiative.

Ahmedabad's efforts are unique inSouth Asia, as countries andinternational organizations have yetto establish comprehensive heatpreparedness plans in the region. Inrecent years, the World HealthOrganization (WHO) has includedamong its goals the strengtheningof health systems to cope with thehealth threats posed by climatechange. Among seven nationshosting WHO pilot projects relatedto climate change and health, Chinahas an early heat warning systemplanned.3

The initiative can further bemoulded in a more effective way byinvolving community basedmitigation and responsive measuresto the impacts of heat wave. Thisaction plan can further be used as areflection to construct or design theheat wave cope up strategies in othercities and states of India. It istherefore necessary because theincidents of heat waves are on a risewhich undoubtedly effects the mostvulnerable sections of the society.

– Sushma Modi,SOAS, University of London, and

AIDMI

3 https://www.ibef.org/archives/detail/bmV3cyYzNDEzOSYxMTM=

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HEAT WAVE PLANNING IN INDIA

Role and Results of National Disaster ManagementAuthority in Heat Wave Planning in India

Being the apex nodal agency ofDisaster Management in India,

the National Disaster ManagementAuthority (NDMA) has played apivotal role, in dealing with variousdisaster preparedness and responseactivities, including Heat WavePlanning in the country. The role andcontribution of NDMA in the HeatWave Planning can be understood,as per the following initiatives takenin recent past:

NDMA GuidelinesRealizing the intensity of extremeheat events and also the number ofrecorded deaths in recent years,NDMA formulated Guidelines in2016, for "Preparation of Action Plan– Prevention and Mitigation of HeatWave" to address this pertinent issuein detail. The National Guidelineswere reviewed and revised again in2017 after the apex level nationalconsultation. These Guidelines aimto facilitate the stakeholders inpreparing Heat Wave Action Plan byproviding insights into heat relatedillness and necessary mitigative and

response actions to be undertaken.The Guidelines have specified rolesand responsibilities of concernedMinistries/ agencies for managingheat wave at respective levels. Thisactually helped in reducing numberof deaths from 2400 in 2015, to 1100in 2016 and to 200 in 2017 reportablecases across India.

Social Media Campaign on HeatWaveNDMA has been extensively runningheat wave awareness campaign onsocial media. NDMA's Beat The HeatIndia campaign is being widely usedand publicized by variousstakeholders. Further it has alsocome out with the basic awarenessstuff about heat wave on website bythrowing light on Do's & Don'ts, tipsfor treatment, emergency kits,resources and other alliedinformation, with the objective tospread alertness for communities.Besides this, short audio and videospots are also used for greater publicawareness. The campaign hasreached to masses with a message.

Pushing States to embed Heat Wavein SDMPsIn the last four years, NDMA hasreviewed all States and UTs DMPlans. And while reviewing, theNDMA has encouraged the Statesand UTs to cover Heat wave in theirState DM Plans. On the same lines,the States have started addressingthe heat wave. Andhra PradeshSDMP is a good example of heatwave coverage.

Encourage States for Heat ActionPlansThe current focus of NDMA is toencourage all the heat wave affectedStates and Cities to come out withtheir own heat wave action plans.And in this regard, NDMA hasprepared specific checklist for Statesto develop Heat Action Plans. As ofnow, 11 States and 17 Cities haveprepared the Heat Action Plans(HAPs). Now the State Governmentsare taking respective prevention,preparedness and mitigationmeasures to beat the heat.

Rickshaw puller has only this option to survive in Capital.

Ramprasad is serving water inscorching heat of Delhi.


HEATWAVES AND PUBLIC HEALTH

Impact of Heat Wave on Vulnerable Citizensin Indian Cities

IntroductionClimate change is leading to an

increase in average temperaturesand increased possibilities of severeheat waves. Higher daily peaktemperatures and longer, moreintense heat waves are becomingincreasingly frequent globally dueto climate change. Extreme heat canlead to dangerous, even deadly,

health consequences, including heatstress and heatstroke. A Heat Waveis a period of abnormally hightemperatures, more than the normalmaximum temperature that occursespecially during the summer seasonin India. Heat Waves typically occurbetween March and June, and insome rare cases even extend till July.Extreme heat events already have a

significant impact in India. Theimpact of heat wave has been moreadverse to the vulnerable groups ofstreet vendors who are directlyexposed to sun.

MethodologyA Survey with reference to heatwave in 10 cities namely,Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Bhuj,

Periodic Reviews with States andDepartmentsNDMA has organized periodicmonitoring and review meetings atregular intervals with all concernedStates, Central Ministries/Departments relating to HeatWaves. The academic institutionsand selected INGOs, UN agencieswere also involved in theseconsultations (organized inTelangana, 2017 and in AndhraPradesh, 2018). The best practiceswere also shared. Further NDMA istaking stock of the progress with

concerned States at regular intervalsthrough video conferencing as well.It is expected that such initiativeswill really set the tone for betterpreparedness, towards addressingthe heat wave and allied risks in thecountry.

Issue of Advisory to the State and UTsNDMA also timely issues theadvisories, precautions, Do's andDon'ts to the States and UTs,especially related to heat waves.However, primarily IMD informsabout the same via MHA, further

NDMA ensures that information andalerts (RED - Extreme Heat Alert,ORANGE - Severe Heat Alert,YELLOW - Heat Alert, etc.) reachingto the States, by verifying with StateEmergency Operations Centers.

NDMA has functioned more of afacilitator rather than being as anauthority, extending its support toother stakeholders as partner andresource provider, to create anenabling environment in order todeal with heat wave in country.

– AIDMI Team


impact of heat wave in day to daylife. The surveyed results point outthat tree plantation (87.2%) is mostnecessary and efficient way to reduceimpact of heat wave, furthermore,to control using polluting vehicle at41.2%. Though, the respondentsrecommends to have effective lawon cutting trees and Use ofCompressed Natural Gas for AutoRickshaw and other means of publictransport at 35.7% and 37.5%respectively.

ConclusionThe survey was conducted as anexercise to evaluate the communityknowledge on heat wave, its effectsand precautions from heat wave. Theanalysis suggested that not allpeople are well aware about rise inheat and also its impacts. Whereas,precaution have not been communitybased rather individual compressionto reduce vulnerabilities caused dueto heat wave. There has beenpositive response on effectiveness ofearly warning mechanism asindividuals are warned and advisedcautiously. Furthermore, therespondents gave suggestions onhow the early warning can diversifythrough different mediums.

– Vipul Nakum, AIDMI

Mumbai, Machilipatnam,Vijayawada, Rajkot, Guwahati, Puri,and Chatrapur around India wasconducted through survey formswith concerned communityindividuals randomly as well asmunicipal officials. The surveyconsisted 10 questions on impacts ofheat wave, prevention measures onheat wave and early warningsystems on heat waves in differentcities of India etc.

LimitationsWhile conducting the survey, it wasdifficult for the team to approach therespondents with the term heatwave, as not all of them were awareabout it. Many explanations weregiven on heat wave to guide therespondents to fill up the forms.

Key FindingsTotal 165 responses from communityand 36 responses form officials werenoted from different cities ofdifferent age group and profession.Considering the gender aspect 80.8%participation was noted by malesand 19.1% from females. In thesurvey conducted to identify whatpopulation of the society is moreexposed to ill health due to heatwave, 44.2% of the respondentsconsidered children to be more

prone. Whereas, 28.5% constituted ofelderly people and 22.3% of pregnantwomen susceptible to the impacts ofheat wave.

The below two charts give anoverall outline what can be donereduce the impacts of heat wave andsimultaneously what precautionswere taken by the individuals tosurvive the heat this summer.

The graph diagram-1 illustrateswhat precautions were taken byindividuals this summer to beat theheat wave (in percentage). Therespondents were asked to fill upmore than one answer as per theirsatisfaction. 74.5% people followedto drink lots of water, 44.90% peopleavoided going in direct sunlight and44.30% preferred staying indoors.Furthermore, 42.60% people opted todrinking butter milk and other liquidand 43.10% individuals initiated tofind a place to cool down during theafternoons. Subsequently, as shownin the graph other precautionremained below 40%, but what issurprising is only 0.50% people chosethe most effective measure that isplanting more trees on roads.

The graph diagram-2 illustratesrecommendations or steps to reduce


HEAT WAVE RESEARCH

Impact of Heat Waves on Citizens

Heat wave events are becomingincreasingly common in India.

Globally, 2015 was the hottest yearon record, beating the record set in2014 and making it the fourth timethis century that a new hightemperature record was set. In 2015,heat waves in India killed more than2,300 people, making it the 5th

highest in world history in terms ofnumber of casualties. Most of thedeaths concentrated in AndhraPradesh, Telangana, Punjab, Odishaand Bihar. In 2016, India againexperienced a similar heat wavewith the same deadly consequences.

Despite claiming many lives andmaking countless people ill, heatwaves in India are not considered acalamity at the institutional level. InIndia's experience with heat waves,it is instructive to note that themajority of casualties resulting fromthe extreme heat are among the verypoor, elderly, outdoor labourers andhomeless, likely with pre-existing health problems and alack of access to relief. As pointedout by UN's IntergovernmentalPanel on Climate Change (IPCC),climate change will aggravate thefrequency and severity of heatwaves in the coming years. Allthese factors necessitate buildingthe resilience of the poor,marginalized and low incomecommunities in India to the adverseimpacts of heat waves. Thus, Indianeeds institutional level planning tocombat the threat of heat waves.

In 2015, the All India DisasterMitigation Institute (AIDMI)conducted a study titled, 'The Impactof Heat Waves on the Vulnerable

Populations of Ahmedabad'. Thisstudy was conducted primarily withthe participants who either stayed inthe city's slums or worked on itsstreets. The study focused on howthe extreme heat affect the elderly,children, pregnant women living inslums as well as cobblers, porters,auto drivers, construction siteworkers, kiosk operators and otherswho have to brave the vagaries ofweather to earn a livelihood. Allthese people have to work in theextreme heat to make ends meet,often at the expense of their health.Most of the respondents reportedreduced earnings as a result of thisincreased heat. Furthermore, therespondents also identified some ofthe health hazards associated withthe extreme heat such as fever,fatigue, respiratory problems, losingconsciousness, blurred vision, heatstrokes, dehydration, experiencingnausea and body aches.

This study was primarily conductedin Ahmedabad to understand howwell is the city's civic administrationis equipped to handle the risks ofextreme heat. The heat wave thatstruck the city of Ahmedabad in May2010 resulted in 4,462 all causemortalities. In 2013, the AhmedabadMunicipal Corporation (AMC)launched the city's first Heat ActionPlan (HAP). Ever since, the casualtiesdue to extreme heat have beenconsiderably reduced.

In addition to the HAP of theAhmedabad civic administration,AIDMI's research on the impact ofextreme heat on the citizens of thecity presented unique lessons. Thefirst lesson was the importance ofinstitutional efforts such as the heataction plan (HAP) launched by theAMC. These initiatives lend a greaterdegree of efficacy and sustainabilityto the mitigation and adaptationefforts. The second lesson was theindispensability of early warningsystems in saving lives andreducing human distress. Perhapsthe most important lesson was theidea that extreme heat impactspeople from differentbackgrounds differently. Whilefor the rich who have the optionof cloistering themselves in airconditioned rooms, this extremeheat may be at best aninconvenience. The poor on theother hand have no such luxury,and often expose themselves tothe extreme heat to earn alivelihood.

– Kshitij Gupta,AIDMI

1 How to Reduce Heat Wave Exposure among the Most Vulnerable, https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/how-to-reduce-heat-wave-exposure-among-the-most-vulnerable/


HEAT WAVE MITIGATION IN INDIA

India Heading for Worst Summer and HeatWave Across Half the Country

According to a scientist inGermany and Spain, heat

waves are set to double in size by2020 and continue to grow in comingdecades, as heat trappinggreenhouse gases warm the globalclimate. According to India'sweather department, the country isheading for a worst summer averagetemperature from March to Mayacross half of the country will riseby 1 degree Celsius.

According to Indian MeteorologicalDepartment (IMD), these months areexpected to be particularly mercilessin north India including Delhi, alongwith Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan,which likely to see averagetemperatures soar over 1.5 degreesabove normal.

The maximum rise, however, hasbeen projected in the hill states of

Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand,where average temperatures couldbe a massive 2.3 degrees higher thanusual. Both states are known for theirhill stations where thousands oftourists throng to escape from thescorching sun in Northern andWestern parts of the country.

The seasonal forecast, released bythe IMD also notes that there isabout 52% probability thatmaximum temperatures in the coreheat wave zone during the periodof March to May will touch theirpeak-pointing to a high likelihoodof heat waves in the country. Thiszone includes Delhi, Punjab,Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand,Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh,Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh,Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, WestBengal, Odisha, Telangana,Marathwada, Vidarbha, Madhya

Maharashtra and coastal AndhraPradesh.

It was also observed that extremetemperature is often underestimatedand never reported as a disasterevent, but records show that in thepast decade heat waves were thesecond most deadly disaster eventin India, after floods.1

As per the IMD forecast, regionswhere the temperature rise is likelyto be moderate are south India andfour northeastern states. The outlookshows that the seasonal averagemean temperature in Tamil Nadu,south interior Karnataka,Rayalaseema and north-easternstates of Nagaland, Manipur,Mizoram and Tripura is likely to beless than 0.5 degrees Celsius abovenormal.

The forecast for the March-Mayperiod is prepared on the basis ofprevailing initial conditions inFebruary.

"In the absence of other large scalesignals during the March-Mayperiod, the increased temperaturespredicted in the forecast can beattributed to global warming," saidD Sivananda Pai, head of IMD's longterm forecasting division whichmade the forecast.

IMD are actually doing a very goodjob in forecasting heat waves andmedia is also doing a good job byreporting these forecasts. But still itwas observed in the city or any otherplace in India, people do not stopthemselves to go outside even after

1 Heat action plans: Scaling up India's ambition to protect the climate-vulnerable, November 2017 available at https://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/CDKN_Heatwave-Guide_FINAL-WEB.pdf

Street vendors have to often brave out the extreme heat in order to make aliving.

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these weather forecasts of extreme.For millions of the people, whoselivelihood is depend on dailylabour, street vendors, salesrepresentatives, staying away fromthe killer heat is still not a choice.Apart from the petty vendors, seniorcitizen, office and school goers,motorists, and pedestrians bore thebrunt of the sun and get affected bythe increasing heat.

A new analysis of mortality duringheat waves shows that the death tollmay rise by two and a half timesover the next 50 years. Recently apilot study was conducted by AllIndia Disaster Mitigation Institutionwith small business owners in theGuwahati city, Assam where it wasfound that among the totalrespondents 64% were affected bythe rise in temperature in GuwahatiCity. 49% of the respondents affectedby heat waves had faced damage totheir livelihood products of which46% indicated that they had faced areduction in sales, as appetite ofcustomers reduced due to scorchingheat which results in fewer sales offood items, and 5% indicated majorhealth problems like fever, sunstroke and Stomach problem. Thehighest gross amount of loss anddamage is Rs 60000 while the lowestamount of loss and damage sufferedby the respondent is Rs 200 and theaverage is Rs 2974.

Another research was carried out bythe All India Disaster MitigationInstitute (AIDMI) to analyse theadverse impacts that the heat waveof 2014 has had on the vulnerablecommunities of the city of

Ahmedabad in Gujarat, India. It wasfound that 38% of the respondentshad an opinion that heat wavesimpacted their incomes. During thesurvey, it came out that of the totalrespondents 31% favourednewspaper alerts followed by localTV alerts (25%), mobile SMS alerts(21%), alerts directly through AMCofficials' visit (16%) and others suchas loudspeakers (7%) for emergencyalert.

The frequent rise in temperaturemay affect the human health in thelong term which may cause serioushealth problems, including severedehydration, heat stroke and, in theworst cases, death. The heat threatmay worsen in urban areas due toheat absorbent building materials,higher air pollution and a lack ofvegetation. Moreover, extremetemperature may lessen theproductivity if people remain toounhealthy or unwell or tired towork and this may direly impact thesocioeconomic life of human beings.It was also observed in as few citieswhere schools, colleges and officeswere remained close for one -twodays due to extreme temperature.For instance, in 2015 taxi drivers

union in Kolkata decided to stay offthe roads between 11 am and 4 pm.2

Heat waves across the country hasreached an alarming level, its notonly affected human, animals andthe environment, even the roads arebearing the brunt of it. In anotherinstance of Delhi from 2015, severalroads got melted under thesweltering heat. This is making lifeeven more miserable for the localpeople, who are facing troublewalking on it as their footwear isgetting stuck to the roads.3 Heatwaves have directly impactingtemperature sensitive sectors such aslivestock and agriculture. The 2015heat wave, killed 17 million chickenswithin a month.4

Followed by such type of incidents,the government is taking action tothe risks posed by extreme heat. Inthis regard, the city of Ahmedabadis leading the way. Ahmedabad isthe first city to launch Heat ActionPlan in 2013 and later on revised itin 2016. The Plan creates immediateand longer-term actions to increasepreparedness, information sharing,and response coordination to reducethe health impacts of extreme heaton vulnerable populations.Furthermore, Ahmedabad MunicipalCorporation's contributions towardsreducing the impact of heat wavesare commendable. In 2017, AMC,introduced 'cool roofs' initiative,which aimed to reduce heat risk invulnerable slum settlements.Gradually, cities are now consciousabout having a specific action planfor heat waves. Although heatwave/increased temperature is still

"We have suffered a lot from theheat. We could not sit inside, wecould not work, people werefalling sick. After some peoplepainted my tin roof with whitereflective paint. I felt so muchbetter. The paint brought thetemperature down by severaldegrees, and I have been able tosit in my home, do my work."

– Meenaben, Ahmedabad

2 India today 2015, Heat wave forces Kolkata's yellow taxis to take five-hour break Available at https://www.indiatoday.in/monsoon/monsoon-bad-news/story/kolkata-yellow-taxi-to-stay-off-the-roads-for-five-hour-summers-254684-2015-05-26

3 Janakiram Karthik, After Delhi, Now Silvassa Roads Are Melting Due To The Heat Wave, Making It Difficult To Walk,2016, available at https://www.scoopwhoop.com/WTH-Roads-In-Silvassa-Are-Melting-After-Heat-Wave-In-India-Reaches-Extreme-Levels/#.df9gkh87y

4 Indian chicken prices surge to record as heat wave kills millions of birds , 2015, available at https://www.reuters.com/article/india-heatwave-chicken/indian-chicken-prices-surge-to-record-as-heat-wave-kills-millions-of-birds-idUSL3N0YM0B920150601


Editorial Advisors:

ALL INDIA DISASTER MITIGATION INSTITUTE411 Sakar Five, Behind Old Natraj Cinema, Near Mithakhali Railway Crossing, Ashram Road,Ahmedabad–380 009 India. Tele/Fax: +91-79-2658 2962E-mail: [email protected], Website: http://www.aidmi.org, www.southasiadisasters.net

Denis NkalaRegional Coordinator, South-South Cooperationand Country Support (Asia-Pacific), UnitedNations Development Programme, New York

Ian DavisVisiting Professor in Disaster Risk Management inCopenhagen, Lund, Kyoto and Oxford BrookesUniversities

Dr. John TwiggSenior Research Fellow in the Risk and Resilienceprogramme, Overseas Development Institute(ODI), London

Madhavi Malalgoda AriyabanduSub-Regional Coordinator, Central Asia & SouthCaucasus, United Nations Office for Disaster RiskReduction (UNISDR), Kazakhstan

Mihir R. BhattAll India Disaster Mitigation Institute, India

Dr. Satchit Balsari, MD, MPHThe University Hospital of Columbia and Cornell,New York, USA

T. Nanda KumarFormer Chairman, Institute of Rural ManagementAnand (IRMA), Anand, Gujarat, India

a very new concept in India. Thereis need for perfect blueprint whichmay work better for other cities andstates too. Still India has a long wayto go to deal with extreme heatthrough several experimentation,evaluation research and all withlearning by doing and theseactivities may ensure and help thecountry to plan to tackle with heatwaves as effectively as possible.

Moreover, there is a need to haveheat adaptation measures as follows:

Measures to deal with extreme heat:1. In order to lessen the extreme

heat mortality, there should bea proper action plan on heatwave and implementation of thesame as well, which may bedone in coordination withgovernment line departments

Fruit vendors like Satwan Prasad often suffer losses as their fruit gets quicklyspoiled in the extreme heat.

and this has been alreadyimplemented in Ahmedabad in2013.

2. Subsidy on purchase of rawmaterials considering the loss ofinventories suffered due toextreme heat.

3. Plantation of number of trees toreduce the ill impact of risingtemperature.

4. Providing proper marketshelter, drinking water andother basic infrastructure formicro business and othercommon people.

5. Building public awareness onextreme heat managementstrategies.

6. Use of media to communicateand alert the public aboutincreasing temperature by linedepartments.

7. Recognizing increasedtemperature as a major concernand there should be properpreparedness plan to tackleincreased temperature orextreme heat.

8. Strong policies to reduce airpollution and managingtraffics.

– AIDMI Team

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Documents

Snet 174 Heat Wave.pdf - ReliefWeb