Tamil Nadu government declares heatwaves a State-specific disaster
Context:
Recently, the Tamil Nadu government declared heatwaves a State-specific disaster and announced ex-gratia payments of ₹4 lakh for families of individuals who die of heat-related causes, including those involved in relief operations.
Relevance:
GS-02 (Government policies and interventions)
What are Heatwaves?
- It is an extended period of excessive hot weather, typically characterised by high temperatures that are above normal for a specific region that can have severe impacts on health, agriculture, infrastructure, etc.
Criteria to declare a heatwave.
- Maximum Temperature Threshold: The maximum temperature during a heatwave must exceed the normal maximum temperature for a particular region by a certain margin.
- Duration: The extreme heat conditions should persist for a specified number of consecutive days, varying based on the region and climatic conditions.
- Diurnal Temperature Variation: Heatwaves often exhibit minimal relief during the nighttime, with higher minimum temperatures compared to normal.
- Regional Variation: Different regions in India may have varying thresholds and criteria for heatwave declaration, considering the climatic patterns and local conditions.
- Local Impact: Heatwave declaration also considers the adverse effects on human health, agriculture, and other sectors, based on local reports and observations.
- Heat Index: The heat index, which takes into account both temperature and relative humidity, may be considered to assess the severity of the heatwave.
- Heatwave Warning Systems: Meteorological departments issue heatwave warnings based on forecasts, which may trigger the declaration of a heatwave in advance.
- Monitoring Stations: Monitoring stations across the country record and analyse temperature data to identify regions experiencing extreme heat conditions.
- Historical Data: Historical weather data is compared to current conditions to determine if the temperature anomalies meet the criteria for a heatwave declaration.
- Government Guidelines: The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) and respective state authorities provide guidelines and standards to determine the criteria for declaring a heatwave.
Some state specific disasters in India include:
- Snakebite: Declared as a state specific disaster in Kerala
- Lightning: Declared as a state specific disaster in Assam
- Heat waves: Declared as a state specific disaster in Kerala
- Sunburn: Declared as a state specific disaster in Odisha
- Coastal erosion: A state specific disaster in Kerala
- Strong wind: A state specific disaster in Kerala
- Soil piping: A state specific disaster in Kerala
- Human-animal conflict: A state specific disaster in Kerala