NEW DELHI — It has been found that on one extremely hot day in India, there could be 3,400 extra deaths, whereas five consecutive days of hot weather lead to almost 30,000 extra deaths, according to a groundbreaking study (Narang, n.d.).
In this study, conducted by Piyush Narang and Ashok Gadgil from the India Energy and Climate Center at University of California, Berkeley, efforts have been made to cover a major gap in public health information by providing mortality estimates for India’s districts (Narang, n.d.).
In New Delhi, on Thursday, one could witness the human impact of these astronomical numbers first-hand. As the mercury rose, women wrapped themselves in scarves to cope with the oppressive heat in a place under extreme thermal stress.
Estimates of the Total Number of National Excess Deaths
The key point made by this research is that “government monitoring greatly under-reports heat-related mortality since it concentrates primarily on heat stroke deaths” (Narang, n.d.). In contrast, this innovative climate-epidemiology model includes “all-cause excess mortality,” reflecting the impact of severe heatwaves on already existing conditions, such as heart, lung, and kidney diseases (Narang, n.d.).
After analyzing the data from local civil registration systems in accordance with the climate regions in the area, the researchers revealed high geographical vulnerability. Specifically, in just five days of a heat wave, the state of Uttar Pradesh will have around 8,100 deaths from excessive heat, while cities like Ahmedabad, Jaipur, and Surat will lose more than 250 extra lives due to a long period of extreme heat (Narang, n.d.).
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