Telangana's heat divide: Why some districts are facing extreme temperatures than others?
In 2024, Telangana witnessed a stark contrast in how different regions experienced the summer heat. Nalgonda district endured a staggering 81 heatwave days — the highest in the State . Close behind was Suryapet with 54 days. In contrast, districts like Hyderabad, Hanamkonda, Medak, Adilabad and Rajanna Sircilla recorded no heatwave days at all, according to the Telangana Heatwave Action Plan 2025. The HAP using districts as administrative units is said to be the first of its kind.
This uneven distribution, as per the report, is closely tied to topographical and climatic differences. Data from the last decade (2014-2024) shows that eastern and northern districts such as Mancherial, Jagtial and Peddapalli consistently record more than 10 heatwave days annually, while the western-central parts including Hyderabad, Medchal Malkajgiri and Rangareddy districts are at a higher elevation, and higher places generally stay a bit cooler, so they have fewer heatwave days.
The report said that in India, heat wave conditions are considered if the maximum temperature of a station reaches at least 40°C or more for plains, 37°C or more for coastal areas and at least 30°C or more for hilly regions, as per the HAP report. To track and respond to these risks, the Telangana State Development Planning Society (TGDPS) uses data from 1089 automated weather stations across the State to issue district-level forecasts and advisories.
The State's vulnerability map, created based on a decade of data, categorises mandals into five tiers — Severe, Critical, Semi-Critical, Vigilant and Safe. Six mandals fall under the 'Severe' category while 106 are marked as 'Critical' and 189 as 'Semi-Critical. Over 16.181 million people are in severe, critical and semi critical zones in the State. The plan's classification uses metrics such as the number of heatwave days and temperature anomalies over the past ten years.
The Telangana State Heatwave Action Plan was initially prepared in 2016 following High Court orders and guidelines from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The plan was revised annually, with updates in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2024, incorporating regular inputs from NDMA and scientific institutions. For 2025, Telangana's Revenue (Disaster Management) department has initiated the revision of heatwave preparedness in collaboration with the district administration of 33 districts, line departments, IMD, TGDPS and UNICEF Hyderabad field office.
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