The Kharghar tragedy: Lessons to be learnt

On 16 April 2023, several hundred thousand people gathered in an open ground in Kharghar, Mumbai, to witness the conferment of the prestigious Maharashtra Bhushan award to a renowned social activist, D N Dharmadhikari. The function, organised by the Government of Maharashtra, got off to a delayed start in the morning and continued till around 1:15 p.m. in the afternoon. As the event progressed, the temperature soared to Celsius, four degrees higher than the Meteorological Department’s (IMD) prediction of 34 to 35 degrees Celsius. Given the VIP attendance, many of the exits were closed for security reasons, and water tankers were provided at quite a distance from the gathering. Overcrowding around water tankers prevented the aged from accessing them. Many people, who had to walk back to their buses parked at a distance, fell unconscious and were carried to nearby hospitals after considerable delay. Several people, especially older women and men, could not sustain themselves in the oppressive heat and humidity. Thirteen people died before drinking water and medical aid could be provided. The Kharghar tragedy must rank high among India’s recent man-made disasters.

Overcrowding around water tankers prevented the aged from accessing them. Many people, who had to walk back to their buses parked at a distance, fell unconscious and were carried to nearby hospitals after considerable delay.

This annual event had hitherto been a low-key affair in Mumbai, observed in an auditorium with a few hundred people in attendance. What led to the decision to upscale it into a mega show out in the open is still being determined. Instead of becoming a grand celebration, it ended in a horrific tragedy. The local administration pleaded the case that the awardee selected the venue, and it just went along with his request. The state government has announced a probe by an additional chief secretary. This attitude to shift the blame onto others and accept no responsibility is uncomfortable. It does not guarantee that such events will not repeat themselves in the future.

Growing heatwaves

Globally, there has been visible warning, recorded year after year, that the world is getting dangerously warmer. Countries have been focused on pinning global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid making more dire predictions if efforts towards modified environmental behaviour by governments and other stakeholders are unsuccessful. No part of the world is untouched by global warming; Kharghar is no  exception. A recent India Meteorological Department (IMD) study reveals that the mortality rate due to heat waves is higher than any other natural hazard. Children and the elderly, especially those suffering from illnesses such as heart and respiratory diseases, kidney ailments, and psychiatric disorders, are most susceptible. Hot summers are not new to India. But, in recent years, several parts of the country have witnessed unusually high temperatures—4^oC-5 ^oC (39.2 ^oF-41 ^oF) above normal—over several summer days, causing heatwaves. Globally, built urban areas are more susceptible to heatwaves than rural areas. The depleting natural landscapes—for example, forests and water bodies—have added to the heat experienced in urban areas. Concrete (and increasingly glass) structures, roads, and other critical infrastructure reflect the sun’s heat into the natural environment. Cities with a high concentration of heat-absorbing infrastructures and limited greenery have therefore increasingly experienced the ‘heat island effect’, as temperatures in the built urban areas are up to 7^oF higher during the daytime and up to 5^oF higher during the nights than temperatures recorded in peripheral and rural areas. According to a Union Ministry of Earth Sciences study, India’s average temperature increased by 0.67 Celsius between 1901 and 2018. It estimates temperatures across India to rise by 4.3 Celsius by 2100, and that heatwaves will multiply by a factor of two or three and their duration will double compared to the 1976–2005 period. The McKinsey Global Institute, too, has made similar predictions. And true to such projections, the ongoing summer across India has been severe. North, central, and east India—particularly Maharashtra, Bihar, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Delhi-NCR—have experienced intense heatwaves since early April, as warned by the IMD.

Cities with a high concentration of heat-absorbing infrastructures and limited greenery have therefore increasingly experienced the ‘heat island effect’, as temperatures in the built urban areas are up to 7^oF higher during the daytime and up to 5^oF higher during the nights than temperatures recorded in peripheral and rural areas.

Despite such grim predictions, India is yet to legally recognise heatwaves as a disaster. However, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has published guidelines for preparing district-level heat action plans (HAPs) to prevent and manage them. Following these guidelines, the Raigad district administration prepared a HAP, putting the district under “medium” category heatwave conditions. However, as the Kharghar tragedy revealed, making plans is not a sufficient precondition for prevention; plans have to be implemented. Multiple failures of event management and disaster management were evident in the Kharghar tragedy. Governments must appreciate that natural and physical environments have significantly changed, and things can no longer be done using the old, settled methods. Climatic conditions, apart from hotter summer months, have become very unpredictable, with wide and frequent ups and downs.

Lessons to be learnt 

All tiers of governance in India must learn from the Kharghar tragedy and adopt several measures to prepare for and tackle the impact of heatwaves. The first step is to amend the Disaster Management Act (2005) to recognise heatwaves as a natural disaster, equipping the Centre, states and urban local bodies with statutory powers to deal with the situation and enforce accountability for failures. Such a statutory provision will also help with the mitigation measures through national and state policies and adaptation responses to heatwaves tailored to local conditions.

The first step is to amend the Disaster Management Act (2005) to recognise heatwaves as a natural disaster, equipping the Centre, states and urban local bodies with statutory powers to deal with the situation and enforce accountability for failures.

Notably, political parties and religious organisations that generally organise such large-scale public gatherings must understand that today’s digital world allows direct and real-time outreach to millions through live streaming. All that is required is the adoption of technology and coming out of the mindset that an event’s success should be judged by the number of people that assemble. This alone will ensure that precious lives are not lost to tragedies such as the one witnessed in Kharghar.

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Ramanath Jha is a Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation

• Domestic Politics and Governance
• Climate Change
• India
• Disaster Management Act
• Global Warming
• heatwaves
• Kharghar tragedy
• Man-made disasters
• Overcrowding

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