“Extreme Heat: Threat COP30 cannot Ignore – Insights from India & South Asia”

Introduction 

Rise in Global Temperature despite having NDC and commitments to reduce global temperature by both governments and industries in the Paris agreement raising strong concerns over the commitments and the efforts made to address the issue. This Extreme Heat will hit the developing and under developed part of the globe the most that is South Asian and African region. In India, more than 70% of Indians have been impacted by Heat waves due to Climate Change, and this increase in heat is causing droughts and water shortages across the country (Goddard et al., 2025). This article aims to highlight how extreme heat needs serious discussion needed in the COP 30 and rapid implementation of measures to reduce its impact.

Extreme Heat: References from India and South Asia 

Extreme Heat is much more impacting in more, with 2024 being recorded the hottest year on record accounting for 45% of global heat related deaths between 2000 and 2019 (CEEW, 2025). More deaths are now reported due to Heat waves with over one billion people in India face heatwaves every year. Old and Children are more vulnerable from Impacts of Extreme Heat and to people who are low in Socio-Economic level. Heat makes no visible destruction and that causes impacts easily ignored in climate negotiations. The Indo-Gangetic Plain in this South Asian region has experienced the highest rise in the summer relative humidity up to 10% increasing the heat stress. CEEW, 2025 report highlights that 77% of the Indian districts are under high to very high heat risk. Major Indian cities such as Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai had experienced intensified “urban heat island”. 34 million full-time job loss is predicted with a reduction in GDP by 4.5% by 2030 making outdoors workers, women, and the elderly more prone to harm due to extreme heat (CEEW, 2025). India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Pakistan are experiencing a shifting monsoon- summer transitions with a pattern of rising hot days and humid nights. 

There are also regional disparities observed where Indian states like Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh are reported to experience higher heatwaves than the national average (Goddard et al.,2025).  Extreme Heat is causing unrest in many sectors, crop failures, water scarcity. Food shortages and energy disruptions that are leading to a cascading climate risk pathway (Goddard et al., 2025). There is enough evidence that the extreme heat risks in India are measurable and urgent, it calls for an urgent action at COP30. With India and South Asia turning into global epicenters of heat stress, its high time to take necessary measures, not only verbal commitments. 

Conclusion 

Extreme heat is no longer for verbal commitment, it is becoming a climate threat for the country, especially for the countries like India that are most vulnerable for global warming. Women, Elderly and Children are becoming more vulnerable to extreme heat. Billion of people exposed to life threatening temperatures, shrinking water resources and collapsing labor productivity, it’s a warning signal that south asia is facing and that it cannot be ignored. The impact of heat waves cannot be felt by collapsing buildings, uprooting trees but they silently affect human health, economic stability and cause social resilience. It's high time for COP30 to recognize the impacts of extreme heat and its challenges and also to recognize extreme heat as a global challenge. Extreme heat must be put in a category which needs proper climate finance, early warning systems and need of rapid decarbonization. To safeguard the future, COP30 must treat extreme heat as one of the main agenda of discussion that needs immediate collective actions. 

References 

Prabhu, S., Suresh, K. A., Mandal, S., Sharma, D., & Chitale, V. (2025). How extreme heat is impacting India: Assessing district-level heat risk. Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW). https://www.ceew.in/sites/default/files/mapping-climate-risks-and-impacts-of-extreme-heatwave-disaster-in-indian-districts.pdf. 

Goddard, E., Marlon, J. R., Thaker, J., Rosenthal, S., Carman, J., Jefferson, M., & Leiserowitz, A. (2025). Majorities in India think global warming is affecting extreme weather. Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/majorities-in-india-think-global-warming-is-affecting-extreme-weather/.