In India’s financial capital Mumbai, construction workers sluggishly toil on a residential building in the sweltering heat. Nearby, hawkers at a popular street market take refuge in shady areas, guzzling water as they try to have some respite from the scorching sun.
On the outskirts of the city, factory owners complain of rare power cuts, bringing work to a halt.
Scientists blame climate change for the heatwave, with several parts of India experiencing record high temperatures in recent weeks. But it is not only its people who are suffering; the South Asian country's economy will also have to bear the brunt of extreme weather.
“Currents of this year’s heatwave in India are being felt across sectors — power, harvests, exports [and] water,” says Manish Dabkara, chairman and chief executive of Indian climate change and sustainability advisory EKI Energy Services. "In addition to people's lives," this weather is “a threat” to the Indian economy.
The number of working hours lost in India due to extreme heat will increase approximately 15 per cent by 2030. It translates into a projected 2.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent, or $150 billion to $250bn, risk to the country's gross domestic product, according to a McKinsey report.
India is one “of the most affected countries due to climate change” and its economy can "lose trillions of dollars due to climate change in the coming years", says Ruchika Bhagat, managing director of New Delhi-based NBC Advisors.
The Indian Meteorological Department has warned that six states are likely to be hit by heatwaves this week, including Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra, of which Mumbai is the capital.
“These events clearly show just how impactful climate change already is,” says Sunali Goenka, co-founder and chief executive of Mumbai-based interior design company We Create.
“It’s no longer a problem for future generations. It's a problem that strikes now, with very tangible and impactful effects.”
Particularly worrisome is the impact “on informal livelihoods in cities that often occur in cramped, poorly ventilated spaces”, as well as the effects for construction and farm workers outdoors who are fully exposed to the heat, Ms Goenka added.
The current heatwave could be just a glimpse of what is to come for India, experts say.
“The overall impact of climate change on the economy is manifold as it will affect agriculture, infrastructure, [as well as] human health,” says Gaurav Kedia, chairman of the Indian Biogas Association.
There's already a "significant drop in working hours due to heat stress”. Agriculture, one of the major contributors to the Indian GDP, is also "under threat" as extreme heat will affect crop production, including wheat, he added.
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