India’s heatwave plan for children: stay home and stay safe?

On May 17, 2023, the sun showed no mercy. The temperature in Greater Noida, a planned city located in the Gautam Buddha Nagar district of Uttar Pradesh, was near 40°C. Rohit, a 15-year-old in Class 8, stepped out of his government school in Jalpura around 2 p.m. His younger brother, in Class 7, walked beside him. They had done this routine countless times. But this day was different. Rohit collapsed just outside the school gate. He didn’t speak, didn’t move. His brother stood frozen.

A teacher rushed to help. She brought him inside, gave him water, and thought it was a heatstroke. But Rohit didn’t respond. He was rushed to Yatharth Hospital, which is 10 km from his school. By the time they reached him, he was gone. The doctors didn’t conduct a full examination. They handed his body over to the police. His viscera samples were preserved, but without the final report, his death remains one of many without a confirmed cause. His family didn’t file a complaint. They took Rohit back to their hometown in Rampur for the last rites.

From March 2023 to July 2024, the state reported 12,765 suspected heatstroke cases and 18 confirmed deaths, according to the National Heat-related Illness and Death Surveillance under NPCCHH.

Across India, children are collapsing—some at home, others at school—under brutal summer heat. 

Heatwaves or even high temperatures seriously threaten children’s health. Their bodies can’t handle extreme heat like adults do. They absorb heat faster and release it more slowly. That makes them more likely to collapse. Infants and young children are especially at risk. Their systems are still developing.

Heat increases death risk above 35°C with humidity

Studies show “all living organisms—humans, animals, crops—function best in a narrow temperature range.” For people, the “comfortable” band lies between 17°C and 24°C. At 35°C with high humidity—or 40°C with low humidity—the risk of death rises sharply. Doctors also now warn that humidity—not just heat—is pushing more children into danger. When humidity is high, sweat can’t evaporate. The body stops cooling. At just 32°C, if the air is humid, children can face the same risks as in dry 46°C heat. Wet-bulb temperature combines heat and humidity. 

As per the study, children's bodies overheat faster, sweat less, and absorb more heat. That makes them more likely to collapse or suffer organ damage. At temperatures above 32°C with high humidity or above 50°C with low humidity, the body struggles to cool down. For children, this can quickly become fatal.

By late March this year, students across Madhya Pradesh sat in classrooms, drenched in sweat, unable to focus. Temperatures had already crossed 40°C. Hot winds blew in from Rajasthan—an adjacent state known for its dry weather.  Divya E. Surendran, a scientist at the India Meteorological Department, said, “The temperature in April is looking high, and it will remain so for the next 2–3 days because we are not seeing any signs of rain yet. There is a possibility of high temperatures in districts like Teekamgarh and northeastern Madhya Pradesh. Bhopal and Vidisha also fall within the border of this heat wave, so the temperature is expected to remain high here too,” she said.

Heatwaves disrupt school routines across India

On April 08, the state government stepped in again. Schools would shut from May 1, as usual. It’s now the standard response across many states: shut the schools. But that leaves children at home, out of class, missing lessons, exams, and routines they rely on. 

Even before the official summer break began, some districts had started changing school schedules to cope with the rising heat. For instance, in Ujjain, where temperatures hit 42°C by late March, the administration revised school timings. From March 30, all government and private schools—across CBSE, ICSE, and state boards—shifted to morning hours, running from 7:00 am to 12:00 pm.

On school routines, Dr. Dinesh Singh Tomar says, “During morning assemblies, especially in rural areas, kids faint or collapse. Teachers have to move them into shaded areas to recover… That’s why the government has introduced new guidelines. Schools must shorten assembly time to just 5 or 10 minutes. If the heat is severe, they should cancel it altogether or shift it to a cooler time of day.” He has been a general physician with more than 35 years of experience and a medical officer for health and family welfare in the Madhya Pradesh government.

The Ujjain district collector issued the order, citing student health and safety. Ujjain had ranked among the state’s five hottest cities in the first week of April. 

A senior official from the State’s School Education Department of Madhya Pradesh said the safety and well-being of students remains the government’s top priority. Most parents welcomed the decision, saying it brings relief during extreme weather. Some parents, though, voiced concerns about the learning gap that may widen during the long summer break.

“The safety of children comes first,” the official said. “We’ve planned this break to protect students from severe heat and to give teachers time to get ready for the new session.”

This is the easy fix from the school authorities across India. As the temperature soars, the states are shutting schools sooner. Early school closures shorten the academic year, potentially leading to gaps in students' education. Important lessons, exams, and extracurricular activities may be missed, affecting the overall learning experience.

High temperatures are just one reason that interrupts the school’s academic year. According to a UNICEF report, children play no role in causing the climate crisis. But they face its harshest impact. In India, 24 million children are affected by climate-related emergencies every year. The climate is getting worse. Children are on the frontlines. 

In 2024, heatwaves in states such as Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and other parts of the country forced schools to shut down or shorten their operating hours, resulting in the loss of nearly 10% of the academic year. The Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report supports this. It links repeated school closures during climate disasters to higher dropout rates and falling academic performance.

Dr. Tomar, says, 

“The temperature has gone up drastically, and children are more vulnerable… Children also sweat more under these conditions, which causes additional water loss. This loss affects multiple organs. We’ve seen dehydration impact not just the skin or energy levels but also liver and kidney function in some children.”

Rising temperatures put young lives in danger

On May 29, 2024, in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, 14-year-old Rekha and her 12-year-old brother Mohit left home around 9:15 a.m. They weren’t going far. Just a short autorickshaw ride to a nearby pharmacy. They returned home before noon, when the sun is over your head and the temperature would be touching 46°C. Soon, one of them felt uneasy and feverish. The discomfort grew. Their father, Rambabu Shakya, said, “They were fine when they left… When I came back, they were gone.” 

By noon, both the kids collapsed inside the house… and were soon dead. Doctors suggest heatstroke could have been the reason. Without any postmortem, it was hard to say conclusively. Many of these deaths happened quietly—without postmortems, police records, or media coverage across India. They vanish into daily routines, often misdiagnosed or unreported. Behind each number is a face, a family, a day that started like any other. 

A new global study on heat-related deaths found that young people, not the elderly, face the highest risk from rising temperatures. This trend could repeat across other hot, low-income countries with large youth populations doing outdoor work.

Several studies support the health risks heatwaves pose to children. A systematic review in PubMed found that children under five face a higher risk of hospitalization during heatwaves. Cases often involve dehydration, fever, and organ stress. The risk of heat-related illness increased by up to 15% during extreme heat events.

“We’re seeing heatwaves begin earlier than usual in northern India,” says Mahesh Palawat, vice president of meteorology and climate change at Skymet. “They usually start by the end of April, but climate change has made them more intense and frequent.”

“We’re skipping spring entirely now,” he adds. “We go straight from winter to summer. The spring season is shrinking.”

India will face higher-than-usual temperatures this summer, with more heatwave days than normal, according to the  Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). The season, which runs from April to June, already sees temperatures rise above 45°C in many places. But this year, large parts of the country will see "above-normal" maximum temperatures. Scientists think climate change is making heat waves longer, more frequent, and more intense.

Dr. Vedprakash Singh, senior scientist at the Meteorological Department in Bhopal, echoes that concern. “We’re seeing an early and intense build-up of heat this year,” he says. “By mid-March, the temperature patterns had already shifted. The risk of prolonged heat waves is high, especially in central and northern Madhya Pradesh.”

Dr. Tomar explains, 

“If a child comes home and complains of dizziness or starts vomiting, that’s a red flag,” Dr. Tomar warns. “If they also report loose motions or stomach pain, you should act quickly. These are early signs of heatstroke.” “The best immediate step is to move the child into a cool place. That could be a room with AC, a cooler, or just good ventilation. The goal is to bring the room temperature down to 36 or 37°C, close to body temperature.”

Additionally, precautions can be that children should only play outside before 9 a.m. or after 5 p.m., as these are the safest times to avoid the peak heat. It’s important for parents to ensure that kids never go to school on an empty stomach or without enough water, as eating properly and staying hydrated helps their bodies cope better with high temperatures. When children return home overheated, they should avoid sitting directly in front of a fan or taking a cold shower immediately, as the sudden drop in temperature can shock their bodies and be potentially harmful.

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