The relentless grip of extreme heat in India is not just a weather phenomenon; it's a force that's pushing the country's poorest workers deeper into a cycle of poverty. This is the stark reality unveiled by new research from the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), which exclusively shared its findings with The Guardian. The study reveals a disturbing trend: extreme heat acts as a 'poverty multiplier,' exacerbating the struggles of hundreds of millions of workers in India's informal sector.
The numbers paint a grim picture. In 2024, those toiling in physically demanding jobs, such as agriculture, construction, and transport, saw their salaries shrink by an average of 6.6% due to extreme heat. Outdoor workers bore the brunt, losing nearly 9% of their earnings, equivalent to a substantial £112 ($151). The economic impact was most severe in Rajasthan, a desert region plagued by prolonged heatwaves and a rising death toll from extreme heat. Here, informal workers faced an income loss of 8.3%, a devastating blow to their livelihoods.
The IIED research estimates that each year, India loses a staggering 21.1 working days per person due to extreme heat. This is an unthinkable loss for the 550 million workers in the informal sector, many of whom cannot afford to take a single day off. Ritu Bharadwaj, the climate finance director at IIED, emphasizes the dire situation: 'Heat is quietly pushing these families deeper into poverty. As the heat rises, their efficiency goes down, so they earn less. With lower income, their food intake falls. And because they cannot afford to stop, they keep working through it, doing lasting damage to their health.'
The implications of this crisis are far-reaching. Human-caused climate breakdown is intensifying heatwaves worldwide, and India, with its predominantly informal economy, could be one of the first places where heatwaves surpass the human survivability limit, according to a World Bank report. The economic cost of heat is estimated to be at least £58 billion, equivalent to 2% of India's GDP, a combination of lost wages, worksite closures, and long-term losses from heat-related illnesses.
The analysis considers three key ways in which heat exposure reduces work hours: heat-related illnesses, reduced capacity for work or maintaining normal productivity, and time lost when workplaces suspend operations. Informal workers, who are among the most socially and economically marginalized, lack employment security, forcing them to work through illness and tolerate unsafe conditions. Access to basic necessities like drinking water, shade, rest areas, sanitation, and medical support at worksites is often poor, and many workers return to homes that offer no respite from the heat.
The stories of those affected are heart-wrenching. Inder and Laxmi Kumar, a husband-and-wife team working on a construction site in Gurugram, have both suffered from fever, body aches, and exhaustion due to the heat. They've lost eight days' wages and can no longer afford to stay at home. 'I felt like I would collapse, like my body was on fire,' Laxmi said. 'We kept working because if we stopped, we wouldn't be paid.'
The burden on female laborers is particularly heavy, as they often care for young children while working. Kumkumari, a 35-year-old construction worker, cools her two-year-old daughter with water, explaining, 'She falls sick often, and when that happens, I have to look after her instead of working.'
The long-term health consequences are alarming. Prolonged exposure to heat and dehydration increases the risk of chronic kidney disease, and the IIED research estimates that over time, one in 20 informal workers in India could develop this condition, affecting over 26 million workers.
Sattavir, a 38-year-old laborer, is one such case. He developed a kidney infection after working in extreme heat and repeated dehydration, earning barely 7,000 rupees in the past two months while spending around 9,000 rupees on medicines and treatment. 'The heat is killer,' he said. 'When people see you're weak, they don't hire you.'
This crisis is a stark reminder of the urgent need for action on climate change and the protection of vulnerable workers. As we grapple with these challenges, one thing is clear: extreme heat is not just a weather event; it's a human rights issue with profound economic and health implications.
