Bihar residents grapple with not only scorching days but also stifling nights as a relentless heatwave sweeps across the state. Over a dozen districts have been experiencing warm nights since early this week, bringing little to no relief even after sunset, confirmed officials at the India Meteorological Department (IMD) in Patna.
Heatwaves and rising daytime temperatures are not new in Bihar during the scorching summer. However, what is new is the occurrence of hot nights. This alarming development adds another layer of discomfort for hundreds of thousands of people who are already struggling with daytime temperatures exceeding 45 degrees Celsius in some areas.
“IMD Patna has issued an orange alert for hot nights in 14 districts, including Patna, on May 30, 2024. There was a similar alert for hot nights on May 29 and 28 in several districts, including Patna, Gaya, Aurangabad, Arwal, Sheikhpura and Rohtas,” said SK Patel, a weather scientist at IMD Patna.
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Patel explained that the hot night alert applies to most districts in the south-central and southwestern parts of Bihar. “We have started forecasting hot nights this year because people are experiencing warm nights that are uncomfortable. This was not recorded earlier,” he added.
Mazhar Khan, a resident of Raghunathpur in Aurangabad, said it has become difficult to sleep at night due to the hot weather. “Even fans and coolers are not effective at night. It is warmer than it used to be, disrupting normal sleep,” he said.
Similarly, Shiv Shankar Prasad, a government official in Gaya, noted, “Nights were never this hot. We are experiencing something new as nights are not cooling down.”
Patel further explained that as Bihar experiences heatwaves and rising daytime temperatures, the nights remain hot because the temperature does not decrease significantly.
“Hot nights depend on the maximum daytime temperature and the minimum night temperature. The lowest temperature should be 4.5°C to 6.4°C higher than normal for it to be considered a warm night,” he stated.
A recent study by the New Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) tracked heat in six megacities Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai. It noted that cities are not cooling down at night as they used to during 2001-2010.
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The study indicated that night-time cooling has been decreasing in recent years across all megacities compared with the mid-2010s. During the summers of 2001-2010, land surface temperatures used to drop by 6.2°C-13.2°C from the daytime peak. Hyderabad used to cool down the most at night, while Kolkata the least. However, in the last 10 summers (2014-2023), night-time cooling has reduced by 6.2°C-11.5°C, the research found.
On May 30 IMD Patna issued heatwave alerts in 16 districts, including severe heatwave warnings in 11 districts.
Abdus Sattar, associate professor at the Centre for Advanced Studies on Climate Change, Rajendra Prasad Central University, Pusa, Samastipur, said the night temperature remaining higher than normal is a sign of hot nights.
“The heatwaves and hot day conditions in May seem extreme given the prevalence of high temperatures and very high humidity, causing severe discomfort across the state,” he noted.
Sattar pointed out that temperatures in the state have been rising each year. Last year, Bihar experienced a prolonged heatwave and strong hot winds for nearly 20 days.
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Officials from Bihar’s state disaster management department said heatwave conditions have claimed the lives of eight people, including one police official, in the past 24 hours. More than 100 students from government-run schools fainted in different districts on Wednesday due to the heatwave and extreme heat.
All of them were rushed to nearby hospitals for treatment. Following an outcry from parents and opposition parties over the timing of schools during the ongoing heatwave, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ordered the closure of all government-run schools until June 8.
Ironically, the running of schools was in violation of the Bihar Heat Action Plan (HAP), as its implementation remains mostly on paper. According to the guidelines of the HAP, school timings should have been adjusted by the end of May.
There is no respite from the extreme heat forecast for May 30, 31, and June 1, the days when the seventh and final phase of the Lok Sabha elections will be held for eight of the 40 seats in the state.
Normal life has been severely affected across the state. Hundreds of people have fallen ill, with dozens undergoing treatment for heat-related illnesses at home or in both public and private hospitals across the state since April 21, 2024.
According to IMD Patna officials, Aurangabad district recorded 48.2°C on Wednesday, the highest in the state. On Tuesday, Aurangabad recorded 47.7°C. The second-highest temperature of 47.4°C was recorded in Gaya on Wednesday. About 10 districts recorded temperatures of 45°C or above on Wednesday. Patna recorded 43°C on Wednesday but with heatwave-like conditions.
Read more: Too hot to sleep? Nights are warming faster than days as Earth heats up
Patel said the extreme heat is breaking records. Gaya recorded 47.4°C on May 29, 2024, the highest temperature to date, breaking the 1896 record.
Health department officials and doctors in public hospitals in Patna, Gaya, Aurangabad, Jehanabad, Arwal, and other districts noted that cases of heat-related illnesses have doubled in the past few days.
A senior doctor at Gaya Medical College and Hospital said, “The number of patients with sunstroke, dehydration, fever, weakness, and other symptoms due to high temperatures is increasing daily.”
Scorching sunlight and strong hot winds during the day are posing significant challenges to people, particularly those from lower-income working-class backgrounds, who have no choice but to work outdoors for hours.
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