Rajasthan HC urges Centre to declare national emergency over heatwave

Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court, noting that hundreds of people died over weeks of harsh weather, has urged the Centre to declare a national emergency in response to the current heatwave.

A scorching heat wave is sweeping throughout India, with some towns seeing temperatures well above 45 degrees Celsius.

The court in Rajasthan, which has had some of the hottest temperatures in recent days, declared that the government had neglected to take the necessary precautions to shield the public from the heat, AFP reported.

"Due to extreme weather conditions in the form of (the) heatwave, hundreds of people have lost their lives this month," it said Thursday.

"We do not have a planet B which we can move onto... If we do not take strict action now, we will lose the chance of seeing our future generations flourish forever.”

The state government was ordered by the court to establish compensation funds for the families of those who died from heat-related illnesses.

It further stated that India should start declaring the present heatwave and similar occurrences as "national calamities". This would enable the mobilisation of emergency aid in a way akin to those of natural disasters like cyclones, floods, and storms.

India is accustomed to scorching summer temperatures, but years of scientific study have revealed that heatwaves are growing longer, more frequent, and more intense due to climate change.

The estimated 30 million residents of Delhi saw a record high in electricity usage on Wednesday as the city's temperatures skyrocketed this week.

According to researchers, the severe heatwave that has affected India due to human-induced climate change should be regarded as a warning.