New Delhi: Residents of Sunder Nagri in northeast Delhi are documenting their daily experiences of surviving increasingly severe heatwaves, offering a ground level picture of how extreme temperatures affect people living in densely populated and low income neighbourhoods.
Around 40 households are participating in a community project in which residents maintain “garmi khatas”, or heat diaries. The diaries record their daily routines, working conditions, health, mood, household expenses and the strategies they use to cope with extreme heat.
The initiative aims to fill a gap in conventional heat planning, which largely relies on meteorological data such as air temperatures and heatwave thresholds. Researchers say such information does not fully capture how heat affects people differently depending on their income, occupation, housing conditions and location.
One resident, 39 year old Gulshan, said she repeatedly washes the floor of her one room home to cool it before her four children sleep. The family also uses a desert cooler cautiously because of electricity costs. To cope with the heat, they sometimes dampen their clothes before sleeping, although prolonged contact with wet clothing has contributed to skin problems.
Another resident, 19 year old Arshi, lives with five family members in a single room while studying through distance learning and making decorative tassels for trucks. She earns about ₹150 a day and sometimes visits her college library simply to spend time in an air-conditioned environment.
Heat and humidity can make indoor conditions particularly difficult. In Arshi’s home, an air temperature of 29.3°C combined with 84.6% relative humidity produced a “feels-like” temperature of 36.3°C.
Outdoor workers face additional risks. Raja, a 21 year old vegetable vendor, works in temperatures that can reach around 45°C during peak summer. His vegetables spoil more quickly in the heat, while fewer people venture outside, affecting his income.
Residents have also carried out their own heat mapping in Sunder Nagri. Some streets recorded ground surface temperatures above 54°C. A thermal image of Raja’s vending area showed a surface temperature of 52.8°C.
The findings highlight major differences in heat exposure even within the same city. Satellite based analysis has shown significant variations in land surface temperatures between different parts of Delhi with densely built areas generally experiencing greater heat than greener neighbourhoods.
Researchers involved in the project say community level information could help authorities design more targeted heat protection measures, including shaded areas, water facilities and additional greenery. They argue that understanding where and how people experience extreme heat is essential for effective urban planning.
The diaries have also been submitted to India’s National Human Rights Commission, with campaigners calling for extreme heat to be recognised as a human rights concern. The testimonies could potentially be used to demonstrate the health and economic impacts of extreme temperatures and strengthen demands for government accountability.
The development comes after the Indian government added heatwaves to the list of nationally notified disasters on August 4, allowing states to access emergency relief funds.
Researchers and residents hope the new framework will lead to more localised action and financial support for people facing rising medical, cooling and electricity costs during prolonged heatwaves.
For residents such as Arshi, the larger goal is simple: ensuring that policymakers understand what extreme heat actually looks like inside homes, on streets and at workplaces.
“Even if the government sees something as small as our rising medical and electricity costs and tries to help with that, it would feel like a win,” she said.