This year March has brought a scorching reality to Western India like the mildness of spring normally does. India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange warning to Gujarat, Saurashtra and Kutch, which is a serious heat wave that has already hit the region much earlier than anticipated.
The state is on the forefront of an early fight against climate with temperatures in some of the districts soaring up to about 8° C above the average seasonal temperature. In Rajkot, mercury recorded a scorching 41.4 degree C this week, and Ahmedabad came right behind at 41.4° C. The Orange Alert is not merely a weather category to the residents of such areas, but rather an appeal to the community to be resilient and prepared.
The Science of the Surge: Why It is Getting So Hot
The existing spike is mostly credited to the existence of dry northerly winds to northeasterly winds at lower altitudes of the atmosphere. These are dry winds which serve as a heat-trap to the dry topography of Kutch and the plains of North Gujarat.
Orange Warning (Be Prepared) is a particular warning that is issued when the conditions of severe heat waves are predicted to be ongoing at a period of two days or more, and some cases when a regular heat wave is concerned and lasts four days. This alert has been categorized as a high health concern among the vulnerable groups where infants, the elderly and the individuals with a chronic health condition such as the cardiovascular or respiratory diseases fall under the high health concern category.
The threat is not only in the peak during the day, but in so-called Warm Nights as meteorologists refer to them. The human body may have lost its window of hope when the minimum temperature is still quite high in comparison with the natural level. The heat stress is enhanced without the cooling effects of a cool night resulting into increased chances of heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Also read: IMD forecasts dense fog Conditions over Himachal Pradesh
Life Under the Orange Sun: Crisis Humanization
The stories of ordinary citizens going through a furnace like atmosphere are behind the statistics of degrees and departures out of normal.
Rameshwar Bhai, an auto-rickshaw driver, tells about air in the narrow lanes of Ahmedabad as a physical burden. At 11 AM, he says it is too hot to sit on the seat, and the air entering through the windows is even like it was in a tandoor. We must take a stop every hour or else we have to put our heads under water. In case we do not work we do not eat, but the heat is such that we cannot remain on the road.
This plight is reflected in the salt pans of Kutch, where a worker has to contend with a merciless sun and the glare of the white salt which doubles up. To these communities, the arrival of summer is not only a weather change but a financial and physical danger.
The main defense of the city is the Heat Action Plan (HAP) first pioneered by Ahmedabad in 2013 and since a blueprint of the state. This year the adoption has been rapid:
- Signal Relief: In Ahmedabad, close to 70 key traffic signals have been left inactive at the time of 12 PM to 4 PM to ensure that commuters are not roasting at crossroads.
- Green Shelters: In 24 busy areas the green shade nets are located to rest briefly.
- Construction Site Closings: the construction sites have been directed to halts during the most active time of 1 PM to 4 PM, a step that is very vital in the safety of the manual workers.
Read more: IMD puts Delhi on orange alert as dense fog surrounds national capital
Preparedness and Health: Turning the tide
The state government and local municipal corporations have also triggered a multi-tier response system to fight the physiological impact of the heat wave.
Hydration Infrastructure
Over 350 water stations have already been set up in Ahmedabad alone and it is planned to expand to 1,000. They will be at strategic locations like BRTS bus stands and parks so that one will never be more than a few blocks apart without hydration.
Medical Readiness
All the Urban Health Centres (UHCs) have been stocked with the Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) by the Health Department. Different hospitals such as Shardaben and SVP Hospital have even prepared special wards, dubbed Heat Stroke Wards. The doctors are recommending a change in diet – putting stress on the traditional cooling water such as lassi, buttermilk (chaas), and torani (rice water).
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