Heat action plans in India failing to effectively reduce urban temperatures
In the heart of South Asia, India is currently grappling with a punishingly hot summer, and the problem seems to be escalating. More than half of the country's urban and rural districts, home to over 1 billion people, are at high or very high risk from extreme heat [1]. City planners are encouraged to treat heat as a long-term design problem, not just an emergency, but the implementation of long-term heat resilience measures remains a challenge.
The State Disaster Mitigation Fund has 320 billion rupees (US$3.71 billion) to cover disasters between 2021 and 2026, and heatwaves are now eligible for project-based funding [2]. However, these funds are often underutilized due to the guidelines still being finalized [8]. Heat Action Plans (HAPs) are India's primary policy response to rising temperatures, but they pose threats to public health, food security, and outdoor workers [7].
Despite the implementation of HAPs, these long-term measures are often underfunded, uncoordinated, and inconsistent [3]. Local governments rely mostly on short-term, low-cost fixes and lack dedicated budgets or comprehensive visions for long-term climate resilience. The scale and complexity of rising temperatures require substantial investment—Indian cities need over $2.4 trillion by 2050 to build resilient and low-carbon infrastructure [4].
Cities like Chennai, a city of 6.8 million people, are taking steps to address this issue. Using district-level heat-risk data, Chennai decided where to build parks and bodies of water as part of its 20-year city master plan [6]. However, a holistic approach to deal with ever-rising temperatures in India is still missing [5]. Experts argue for a city that implements both short-term and long-term measures, legally backed, publicly engaged, and fully implemented [5][6].
Vishwas Chitale, a climate resilience researcher, emphasized the need for a city that does it all. Selomi Garnaik, a campaigner with Greenpeace India, stated that many HAPs lack targeted investments or meaningful shifts in infrastructure and governance [3]. Pillai expressed a similar need, stating that a city should not only respond to heatwaves but also proactively prepare for them [5].
The central government encourages local governments to adopt HAPs, but it is not mandatory [3]. Most of the respondents supported national action, like shifting to clean energy, rather than measures at the local level [9]. Redesigning built environments and other long-term solutions are rare in HAPs [3].
Above-normal temperatures were observed in March and April before an early monsoon season and heavy rainfall brought temporary relief [10]. Despite these challenges, cities continue to strive for heat resilience. For instance, Ahmedabad’s Heat Action Plan model and Kochi’s roadmap for climate resilience focused on ecosystem restoration and community-based responses [1][5].
References:
- India's Cities Struggle with Long-Term Heat Resilience Amidst Limited Funding and Coordination
- State Disaster Mitigation Fund
- Heat Action Plans in India: Challenges and Opportunities
- Financing Urban Climate Resilience in India
- Climate Change and Heatwaves in India: Challenges and Solutions
- Chennai's Heat-Resilient City Master Plan
- Heatwaves in India: A Public Health Crisis
- State Disaster Mitigation Fund Guidelines
- Public Opinion on Climate Change and Heatwaves in India
- India's Early Monsoon Season Brings Temporary Relief from Heatwave
- To address the escalating climate change issue in India, a city implementing both short-term and long-term measures, legally backed, publicly engaged, and fully implemented is advocated by experts.
- The lack of targeted investments or meaningful shifts in infrastructure and governance in Heat Action Plans (HAPs) has been pointed out by campaigners like Selomi Garnaik of Greenpeace India.
- Cities like Chennai are using district-level heat-risk data to form part of their long-term climate resilience strategies, such as building parks and bodies of water.
- A holistic approach to dealing with ever-rising temperatures in India, encompassing clean energy and long-term design solutions, is still missing, according to climate resilience researchers like Vishwas Chitale.
