Indian cities are going through one of the most intense heatwaves, which might turn out to be far worse than the one in 2024, which, according to the Met Dept, was the worst since 1901. While the reasons for the heatwave, according to the Met Office, are anti-cyclonic circulation, dry winds, low humidity, and climate change trends, they can no longer be seen just as a public-health emergency; they are an economic shock that is already costing the country billions of dollars and billions of labour hours.

The result of the 2024 heatwave was extremely alarming and severely hurt the economy. About 247 billion labour hours were lost in that year, and roughly $194 billion in economic losses resulted from heat exposure. Agriculture accounted for 66 per cent of losses and construction about 20 per........

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