SC seeks govt reply on plea for heatwave rules
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai issued notice on a petition filed by a Delhi-based lawyer Adil Sharfuddin, who gathered data of heatwave deaths in the past few years from government sources; the data indicated 730 heatwave deaths in 2024.
Senior advocate MR Shamshad appearing for the petitioner said that in April this year, the Rajasthan high court took suo motu cognizance of heatwave deaths and urged the Centre to declare a national emergency when it is very hot; that came when several cities in north India were reeling under temperatures above 45 degrees Celsius.
Shamshad said that the proceedings in the high court have closed and there is no way to elicit a response from Centre on whether it intends to come out with heat protection regulations with enforceable obligations on employers and the state to provide for flexible work hours, sufficient hydration, shaded areas or rest shelters and medical kits during extreme heatwave days. The petition also sought a Heat Action Plan to be introduced by states to mitigate the effect of heatwave conditions.
The bench, also comprising justices K Vinod Chandran and Joymalya Bagchi, directed the matter to be heard after four weeks.
Heatwaves fall within the definition of 'disaster' as per Section 2(d) of the Disaster Management Act, the petition said, and the NDMA, under section 3 of the Act, is mandated to lay down policies, guidelines and plans for reducing risk of heatwave deaths, it added.
While NDMA issued non-binding guidelines in 2016 and 2019 on heatwave management, the petition demanded mandatory regulations for uniform compliance across all states.
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