Resilience to Extreme Heat

By 2050, India is projected to be one of the first countries where summer temperatures will surpass survivability limits. Ambient peak temperatures across parts of India have already started exceeding 50 degree Celsius in summers.

Heatwaves in India are becoming longer, more frequent, and more intense. The heat seasons of 2022, 2024, and 2025 were each described as unprecedented at the time. On 19 May 2026, all of the world’s 100 hottest cities were in India. This trend of warming is projected to continue. If global temperatures rise 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, extreme heat events in India could become four times as frequent. At 2°C, they could become six times as frequent.

The losses are large and fall hardest on those least able to absorb them. The people most exposed to this heat, including outdoor workers and households without cooling, have the least protection from it. Up to 380 million workers, about three-quarters of India’s workforce, depend on heat-exposed jobs that produce close to half of national GDP. In 2024, heat exposure cost India an estimated 247 billion potential labour hours and US$194 billion in potential income, mostly in agriculture and construction.

~30,000 excess deaths from a single five-day heatwave across the country
Up to 380 million workers in heat-exposed jobs
US$194 billion in potential income lost to heat in 2024

At the India Energy & Climate Center (IECC), we work to leverage advances in climate science to deliver rigorous research in heat resilience and adaptation that can be translated into large-scale action. IECC turns advanced research into evidence and tools that government and civil society can use to protect India’s most vulnerable from rising heat, and to treat extreme heat as a system-wide risk that needs an integrated approach.

A single day of extreme heat is associated with approximately 3,400excess deaths across India. A five-day heatwave: nearly 30,000. These are conservative lower bounds. The five highest-burden states account for 66 percent of these deaths but only 29 percent of India’s GDP. The places least able to invest in adaptation bear the greatest risk.

Narang & Gadgil, Frontiers in Environmental Health (2026)

IECC develops evidence and tools with the government agencies that will use them. Our work spans measurement, planning, infrastructure, and policy- bridging scientific insights with on-the-ground action.

Measuring heat stress for workers. EHI-N* is a heat index that accounts for humidity, physical exertion, and sunlight. SHRAM applies it across more than 750 districts.
Testing cooling interventions in Indian conditions. A low-cost modular cooling shelter for construction workers, designed with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
Ward-level heat planning. CHAITRA identifies the highest-risk wards in a city, the interventions each one requires, and their cost.
Designing for future climate conditions. To enable housing and infrastructure to be designed for the heat they will face over their service life.

By focusing on research, data-driven solutions, and policy engagement we work to create sustainable solutions that protect vulnerable communities and ensure long-term resilience. Policy analysis grounded in scientific rigor helps us inform India’s heat resilience strategies and implementation pathways.

System for Heat Risk Assessment for Manual labor

SHRAM provides real-time heat stress monitoring across India using EHI-N*, a physiologically-based model calibrated to MET levels developed by the IECC team. EHI-6* estimates heat stress experienced by workers doing heavy labor in direct sunlight.

View current conditions by district, 3-day forecasts, and sign up for personalized alerts when hazardous heat levels are detected.

City Heat Action Intelligence and Risk Atlas

CHAITRA provides ward-level decision support for heat resilience in Indian cities using satellite data and the IPCC AR6 risk framework. Developed by IECC team, it identifies which wards face compound heat risk, what interventions each requires, and what they cost.

View priority wards by layer, generate resource estimates, and export reports for departmental budget planning.