Context

• As northern India faces an intense heat wave, the most vulnerable are the workers, especially those engaged in hard physical labour.
• Delhi has reported temperatures surpassing 50 degrees Celsius, creating severe and life-threatening conditions for labourers.
• The death of a 40-year-old worker due to extreme heat has prompted the Lieutenant Governor's office to issue guidelines and this intervention highlights the urgency and severity of the situation for those who work under the scorching sun.

Existing Heat Action Plan and Gaps in these Policies

• Existing Heat Action Plans
  • Heat Action Plans (HAPs) are designed to help government departments prepare for and respond to heat waves.
  • These plans, as mandated by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), are intended to be comprehensive, covering city, district, and state levels.
  • While HAPs have been instrumental in reducing casualties, they often fail to address the specific needs of different vulnerable groups, particularly informal urban workers.
  • Many cities in India lack HAPs, and existing ones rarely include detailed provisions for workers, focusing instead on a broad “outdoor workers” category without specific interventions.
• Inadequate Coverage and Implementation
  • Although the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) mandates the drafting of HAPs at city, district, and state levels, many regions still lack comprehensive plans.
  • In many cities where HAPs do exist, their implementation is often inconsistent and lacks depth.
  • This inconsistency means that the benefits of HAPs are not uniformly experienced across different areas, leaving many vulnerable populations, particularly in urban environments, without adequate protection.
• Insufficient Focus on Informal Workers
  • Existing HAPs largely overlook the specific needs of informal workers, who constitute a significant portion of the urban workforce.
  • These workers include construction labourers, street vendors, domestic workers, and home-based workers, all of whom face unique challenges during heat waves.
  • When HAPs do mention workers, they often refer generically to outdoor workers without acknowledging the diverse and specific needs of different types of labour.
  • This lack of specificity results in insufficient and inappropriate interventions that fail to address the actual conditions faced by these workers.
• Short-Term, Reactive Approach
  • Many HAPs adopt a short-term, reactive approach focused on immediate relief measures rather than long-term solutions.
  • This approach is evident in the ad hoc nature of interventions such as temporary water provision and altering work hours during peak heat periods.
  • While these measures provide immediate relief, they do not address the underlying vulnerabilities that worsen the impact of heat waves on workers.
  • There is a need for HAPs to integrate with broader urban planning and climate action plans to ensure sustainable and resilient solutions.
• Rural Bias in Planning
  • HAPs are often designed with a rural bias, neglecting the unique challenges of urban environments.
  • Urban areas experience the "heat island effect," where dense infrastructure and reduced vegetation contribute to higher temperatures.
  • Informal settlements in cities, where many workers live, are particularly vulnerable due to poor housing conditions and limited access to basic services.
• Lack of Integration with Urban Planning
  • HAPs often operate in isolation from other urban planning and development initiatives and there is little coordination between HAPs and urban design, housing policies, or infrastructure development.
  • This lack of integration means that opportunities to create more heat-resilient urban environments are missed.
  • For example, urban greening, improved housing designs, and better urban mobility can significantly reduce heat exposure and improve the quality of life for informal workers, but these measures are rarely considered in HAPs.
• Absence of Worker Participation
  • Another critical gap is the lack of participation from worker communities in the development and implementation of HAPs.
  • Informal workers, who are most affected by heat waves, often have valuable insights and practical knowledge about their working conditions and the specific challenges they face.
  • Their exclusion from the planning process results in measures that may not be practical or effective.

Policy Recommendations to Mitigate the Impact of Heat Wave

• Reconceptualising Heat Waves
  • There is an urgent need to treat heat waves as prolonged disasters rather than conventional events, linking HAPs with long-term urban planning and climate action plans.
  • The NDMA should collaborate with urban stakeholders like the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and the Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE).
• Worker Participation
  • Worker communities must have a voice in the preparation of action plans.
  • The government should engage worker welfare boards and committees like the Town Vending Committees (TVC) for street vendors in drafting and implementing HAPs.
  • Engaging worker welfare boards and similar organisations in the drafting of HAPs can lead to more tailored and impactful interventions.
• Gender-Specific Needs
  • The impact of heat waves is not gender-neutral. Women workers, who make up a large portion of the informal workforce, face additional challenges that are often overlooked in HAPs.
  • These include increased care responsibilities, health risks related to reproductive health, and greater exposure to heat in domestic and care work settings.
  • HAPs need to incorporate gender-specific measures to address these challenges, ensuring that interventions are equitable and inclusive.
• Economic and Health Protection
  • The economic and health impacts of heat waves on informal workers are profound, yet HAPs rarely include measures to mitigate these effects comprehensively.
  • Informal workers often face income loss due to reduced working hours and increased expenses on health care and protective measures.
  • There is a need for HAPs to include provisions for income protection, such as compensation for lost wages, and access to affordable health care.
  • Additionally, social protection systems should be strengthened to provide a safety net for workers during extreme heat events.
• Rethinking Labor Laws
  • As labour laws and the Labour Codes are reformed, integrate considerations of climate change and its impact on work.
  • This integration ensures that labour laws are responsive to the new challenges posed by extreme heat and other climate-related events.
  • There is a need to extend legal protections to informal workers, ensuring they have the same rights and benefits as formal workers.
  • This includes provisions for safe working conditions, fair wages, and access to social security.
• Urban Reimagining
  • The government should consider redesigning urban spaces to make the needs of informal workers visible and prioritised.
  • This redesign includes ensuring access to water, shade, and rest spaces in public and work areas.
  • Also, there is a need for more investment in urban infrastructure that mitigates the impact of heat waves.
  • This includes increasing green spaces, improving housing conditions in informal settlements, and enhancing public transportation.

Conclusion

• The brutal heat wave in northern India has underscored the urgent need for comprehensive and inclusive measures to protect the most vulnerable workers.
• By integrating long-term planning, inclusive policies, and worker participation, India can better safeguard its informal workforce against the devastating impacts of extreme heat.
• Ensuring that cities are designed with workers' needs is crucial for developing a more resilient and equitable urban environment.