A Greenpeace India report has sounded the alarm on a disturbing trend in Delhi, prolonged exposure to soaring heat and humidity quietly driving up mortality, particularly among the city’s most vulnerable.
The study, Death and Degree, examined data from 2015 to 2024 and spotlighted a clear link between unrecognised deaths and extreme thermal stress in the capital. Researchers pointed out that while air temperatures do not necessarily peak in July and August, those months now “feel as oppressive as the peak summer months, signalling a dangerous shift where the duration of heat stress is extending well into the monsoon season.”
The authors tracked patterns using the universal thermal climate index (UTCI), a measure of how the human body perceives heat outdoors, and found that Delhi recorded alarmingly high UTCI values from June through September. Humidity, they observed, intensified the dangers, creating a lethal combination for those exposed to the elements.
Deaths between June and August rose sharply over recent years, from 5,341 in 2019 to 11,819 in the period 2022–2024. June, which consistently registered the highest UTCI, also accounted for the most fatalities each year. The report drew particular attention to June 2024, when 192 homeless people perished from heat strokes in the span of just eight days, marking the highest toll in two decades.
“These figures reflect a systemic failure in protecting the city’s most vulnerable against intense heat,” the authors noted, highlighting the plight of Delhi’s homeless population, which often bears the brunt of climate extremes.
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The report added that the trend of rising unidentified deaths corresponded disturbingly with broader mortality patterns. National Crime Records Bureau data from 2022 revealed that more than nine per cent of deaths in recent years were attributed to ‘heat or sun strokes’, with most victims aged between 30 and 60.
Global and national evidence has further deepened concerns. The Lancet Countdown 2023 found heat-related deaths among people over 65 years had increased by 85 per cent during 2018–2022 compared to 2000–2004. Climate models predict that a global warming of 2°C could drive a staggering 370 per cent rise in heat-related deaths.
The Greenpeace India report calls for urgent interventions to mitigate the impact of extreme heat, particularly safeguarding the marginalised. Without robust policies, it warns, the city may continue to face avoidable tragedies.
The findings arrive against the backdrop of the BJP-led government’s repeated commitments on climate resilience and public health. While New Delhi has introduced limited measures such as heat action plans and awareness drives, activists argue that these responses remain piecemeal. Broader strategies to shield at-risk populations, migrant workers, the elderly, and the homeless, are yet to be fully realised, even as climate change intensifies urban vulnerabilities.
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