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Delhi’s Rising Night Heat Turns Homes Into 40°C+ Boxes

Community heat diaries and thermal imaging reveal indoor and surface temperatures far above official readings as illness and lost wages rise.

Overview

  • Since May, Greenpeace and resident volunteers in neighbourhoods such as Sunder Nagri and New Seemapuri have kept weekly heat diaries and used thermal cameras to record lived heat exposure.
  • In-home and street measurements documented bedroom walls at about 37–45°C and road surfaces up to 60°C, values that are much higher than nearby official station averages.
  • Doctors and diarists report heat exhaustion, heatstroke, dehydration, sleeplessness and work absences that have cut wages and disrupted study and household routines.
  • Official monitoring in Delhi is sparse and sited in cooler government campuses, and the city has not classified heatwaves as a disaster, limiting access to targeted funds and relief.
  • Campaigners plan to publish the diaries as a public archive and pursue legal and policy pressure while researchers warn that heat deaths are likely undercounted and require more localised planning.