A severe India heatwave is gripping people all around the country this week, forcing multiple states to shut schools early and set up emergency heatstroke units at hospitals. Temperatures ranging between 40-46°C have been recorded across northwest and central India.
In Rajasthan’s Sri Ganganagar, the mercury climbed to 44.5°C. Across Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan, temperatures are hovering between 42°C and 45°C, and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned that Monday, April 27, could push Delhi’s peak to 45°C.
This is not just uncomfortable. It is dangerous!
India Heatwave: Schools Closing, Hospitals on Alert
As the India heatwave intensifies, Odisha has declared early summer vacation starting April 27, weeks ahead of its usual schedule. Uttarakhand’s Dehradun district shut all schools from Class 1 to Class 12, along with Anganwadi centres, for the day. Chhattisgarh had already moved its summer break forward to April 20, and West Bengal advanced vacations to April 22.
In states that remain open, school timings have been heavily revised. Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, parts of Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Bihar, and Maharashtra now have schools operating between 7 AM and noon to keep children away from peak afternoon heat. Delhi’s Directorate of Education has scheduled summer vacation from May 11 to June 30, 2026.
On the health front, the Union Health Ministry has directed all government health facilities nationwide to set up dedicated heatstroke management units. The move comes as doctors report a rise in heat exhaustion and heatstroke cases across hospitals in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Delhi.
Outdoor Workers Bearing the Worst of It
Another question gaining traction is why working hours for MGNREGA labourers and construction workers have not been made legally mandatory during peak heat hours.
At present, Heat Action Plans issued by state governments are advisory, not binding. Nearly 490 million informal and outdoor workers in India have no enforceable heat safety standards protecting them. The Factories Act of 1948 applies only to indoor settings. The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code of 2020 does not explicitly recognise heat as an occupational hazard, and its provisions for heat safety remain discretionary.
India Heatwave: Why Is This Happening, and Why Now?
India has always had hot summers, but scientists say what the country is experiencing now is significantly different from what was recorded even 50 years ago. Regions that previously saw peak temperatures in the higher 30s to lower 40s are now regularly crossing 45 degrees Celsius. The frequency, intensity, and duration of heatwaves have all increased.
Also, the current crisis did not arrive without warning. IMD’s seasonal outlook for April to June 2026 had already projected above-normal heatwave days across northwest and central India. There is also a newer and poorly understood threat: humidity. Studies by the IMD show that wet-bulb temperatures, a combined measure of heat and humidity, have been rising steadily, especially in coastal regions.
Projections suggest that by the end of this century, nearly 70 percent of India’s population could be exposed to wet-bulb temperatures of 32 degrees Celsius or higher.
The heat wave began intensifying sharply after April 20, driven by a powerful combination of forces:
- Hot, dry northwesterly winds suppressing any rainfall over the plains
- ENSO-neutral Pacific Ocean conditions weakening the cooling weather systems that normally bring relief
- Reduced Himalayan snow cover causing abnormal warming in regions near the foothills
- Long-term deforestation stripping away the natural cooling canopy that once moderated temperatures across the subcontinent
What makes 2026 particularly troubling is the timing. Heatwaves in April used to be rare. Today, climate scientists describe early-onset extreme heat as “the new normal” for the subcontinent.
Why isn’t a heatwave legally a ‘Natural Disaster’?
One of the most significant and least discussed problems in India’s response to the annual India heatwave is a legal one. Under the Disaster Management Act of 2005, heatwaves are not officially classified as notified disasters. The Act was enacted in the aftermath of the 1999 Odisha super-cyclone and the 2004 tsunami, and at the time, heatwaves were considered regular seasonal occurrences rather than catastrophic events beyond a community’s capacity to cope.
Since heatwaves are not notified as disasters, state governments face a cap of 10 percent of State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) allocations for relief. Emergency funds cannot be released to affected families in the same way they can for floods or cyclones. Families who lose a breadwinner to heatstroke have no legal entitlement to compensation.
Legal and policy experts are calling for heatwaves to be included in the National Disaster List for 2026 to 2031. Some are going further, arguing that access to cooling should be recognised as part of Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the Right to Life.
The Onion Advice: Wisdom or Dangerous Distraction?
Amid the crisis, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia drew widespread attention on Sunday after advising people at a public meeting in Madhya Pradesh’s Shivpuri to carry an onion in their pocket as protection against the heat.
“Even if it’s 52 degrees in June, cover your head with a ‘patta’ (scarf), put an onion in your pocket and take the name of God,” he said.
What does science say? Onions do contain quercetin, a compound with antioxidant and mild anti-inflammatory properties. However, there is no peer-reviewed clinical evidence that placing an onion in your pocket prevents heatstroke or meaningfully lowers body temperature.
How Do We Avoid the Heatwave?
At the Individual and Community Level
- Stay indoors between 11 AM and 4 PM during peak heat days
- Drink water regularly, even without feeling thirsty: Dehydration sets in before thirst does
- Wear light, loose, breathable clothing in light colours that reflect heat
- Check on neighbours, especially the elderly, who are at the highest risk of heat stroke
- Plant trees and maintain kitchen gardens even a single tree can lower the immediate temperature around a home by several degrees
At the Urban Planning Level
- Cities need “cool corridors” like parks, tree-lined streets, water bodies, and shaded public spaces that give people somewhere to escape the heat without air conditioning
- White or reflective roofing on buildings dramatically reduces indoor temperatures and must be incentivised, especially in dense low-income neighbourhoods
- Cooling centres such as public spaces like community halls, libraries, and metro stations kept air-conditioned and open to all, must be established in every ward before summer peaks
- Urban sprawl must be checked and green cover must be legally protected from real estate encroachment
Some Relief on the Way, But the Bigger Question Remains
The IMD has indicated that very light rain, thunderstorms, and gusty winds are expected between Monday and Wednesday, which may bring maximum temperatures down to 38 to 40 degrees Celsius by the end of the week in some regions. Western disturbances are expected to provide temporary relief, but meteorologists caution this does not signal the end of the heatwave season.
The larger question is one of policy and preparation. India’s Heat Action Plans exist across several states, but they remain advisory documents. The country does not yet have legally enforceable heat safety norms for outdoor workers, a formal disaster classification that would unlock emergency relief funds, or a clear national framework for protecting its most heat-vulnerable populations.
As climate scientists warn that heatwave seasons will grow longer and more intense in the decades ahead. The summer of 2026 is already writing itself into the record books. But the upcoming summers of next 10 years and beyond are still ours to shape.
PS: For medical emergencies related to heat exposure, contact your nearest government hospital. Symptoms of heatstroke include confusion, hot dry skin, rapid pulse, and loss of consciousness. Call 112 immediately.
Sources: India Meteorological Department (IMD), IQ Air India, India Water Portal, Business Standard, World Weather Attribution, Bloomsbury Intelligence and Security Institute
