India is likely undercounting heat deaths, affecting its response to increasingly harsh heat waves

Months of scorching temperatures sometimes over 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) in parts of India this year—its worst heat wave in over a decade—left hundreds dead or ill. But the official number of deaths listed ...
India now has a bit of respite from the intense heat, and a different set of extreme weather problems as monsoon rain lashes the northeast, but for months the extreme heat took a toll on large swaths of the country, particularly in northern India, where government officials reported at least 110 .

Public health experts say the true number of heat-related deaths is likely in the thousands but because heat is often not listed as a reason on a many heat deaths don't get counted in official figures. The worry, they say, is that undercounting the deaths means the heat wave problem isn't as prioritized as it should be, and officials are missing out on ways to prepare their residents for the scorching temperatures.
All of India's warmest years on record have been in the last decade. Studies by found that up to 1,116 people have died every year between 2008 and 2019 due to heat.

Difficulties registering heat deaths

As part of his work in , Srinath Reddy, the founder of the Public Health Foundation of India, has advised state governments on how to factor in heat when recording deaths.

A man drinks water at a roadside stall serving free drinking water to commuters as a heat wave continues to grip the Indian capital, New Delhi, India, May 22, 2024. The official number of heat deaths listed in government reports barely scratches the surface of the true toll and that's affecting future preparations for similar swelters, according to public health experts. Credit: AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File
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A father tries to calm his daughter suffering from a heat-related ailment as she is brought to the government district hospital in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh state, India, June 19, 2023. The official number of heat deaths listed in government reports barely scratches the surface of the true toll and that's affecting future preparations for similar swelters, according to public health experts. Credit: AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh, File
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Women wait in a queue to cast their vote standing in front of a fan at a polling booth on a hot summer day during the seventh and the last phase of the general election, near Amritsar, India, Saturday, June 1, 2024. The official number of heat deaths listed in government reports barely scratches the surface of the true toll and that's affecting future preparations for similar swelters, according to public health experts. Credit: AP Photo/Prabhjot Gill, File
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A worker distributes water bottles to guests sitting near coolers to ward off the heat at the swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi as Indian prime minister at the Indian presidential palace in New Delhi, India, June 9, 2024. The official number of heat deaths listed in government reports barely scratches the surface of the true toll and that's affecting future preparations for similar swelters, according to public health experts. Credit: AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File
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An elderly woman suffering from a heat-related ailment is brought to an overcrowded government district hospital in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh state, India, June 20, 2023. The official number of heat deaths listed in government reports barely scratches the surface of the true toll and that's affecting future preparations for similar swelters, according to public health experts. Credit: AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh, File
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A woman walks carrying water collected from a public tap in a shanty town on the outskirts of Jammu, India, Tuesday, June 18, 2024. The official number of heat deaths listed in government reports barely scratches the surface of the true toll and that's affecting future preparations for similar swelters, according to public health experts. Credit: AP Photo/Channi Anand, File
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