Heatwave SOP a hllow measure: Activists

The SOPs for outdoor informal workers issued on Monday mandate regulation of working hours during heatwaves and compulsory break for workers from 12 noon till 4pm, when the heat is most intense

Mumbai: For gig workers like Datta Bansi Gupta, 32, the state government’s SOPs have come as a relief. A delivery worker since 2018, Gupta works 12-13 hours a day to make ₹2,000. But meeting this target under the intense summer afternoon sun is both arduous and hazardous.

Heatwave SOP a hllow measure: Activists

Gupta admitted he felt giddy at times. “But restaurants often do not let us wait indoors nor do they offer water. If we ask, they tell us to buy bottled water. How can we buy water for ₹10 or ₹20 when we make only ₹20 per delivery,” he said.

This year has been particularly bad, he said, with heatwaves sweeping across the city for several days in March. “We do not have any mediclaim or insurance, so our health issues have to be resolved by spending from our own pocket,” he rued.

The SOPs for outdoor informal workers issued on Monday mandate regulation of working hours during heatwaves and compulsory break for workers from 12 noon till 4pm, when the heat is most intense. But activists in the field of heat stress adaptation and resilience alleged the guidelines were hollow as telling informal workers who were dependent on daily wages to stay indoors would achieve little.

“A heat-safe Mumbai means enforceable protections: shifted work timings during heat alerts, mandatory shade and drinking water at worksites and markets, and access to quick medical care without wage loss,” said Apekshita Varshney, founder of the nonprofit HeatWatch. “It also means cooling shelters in BMC schools and community halls, especially near bastis, markets and transport hubs, that stay open when temperatures and humidity spike.”

Those living in dense informal settlements needed cool roofs, better ventilation and social protection when extreme heat wiped out days of income, the activist said.

The SOPs assume significance in light of rising temperatures every year. According to a recent study by the climate think tank Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), Mumbai has seen an alarming rise in very warm nights which make it harder for the human body to cool down and recover from daytime heat, leading to serious health implications for outdoor workers, elderly, children, and people with pre-existing ailments.

The study, titled ‘How Extreme Heat is Impacting India: Assessing District-level Heat Risk’, says

more than 70% districts in the country including Mumbai have seen more than five additional very warm nights per summer between 2012 and 2022 compared to the climatic baseline (1982-2011).

“With Indian cities and districts increasingly navigating complex and erratic climate patterns, the need for heat-resilient planning and governance becomes urgent,” said Vishwas Chitale, fellow at CEEW.

Additional municipal commissioner Avinash Dhakne said while urban heat management plans were in place in Mumbai, long-term solutions such as greening the city, introducing green infrastructure and avoiding glass facades for buildings needed to be explored.