India Heatwave Assistance

In April 2022, northwest and central India recorded the highest temperature for 122 years.  According to news reports, Delhi recorded a temperature of 49.2 degrees Celsius, with most of India experiencing daytime temperatures that are 5-8 degrees higher than usual.  Whilst heatwaves are common during May and June,  and the first heatwave came to India in March this year.  

Hot weather impacts tens of thousands of people in India, especially families in rural areas.  Hospitals around the country are overwhelmed by ever-increasing cases of heat stroke, diarrhoea, vomiting and high fever. The drying up of water collection points (e.g. wells, ponds, rivers, etc.) has forced villagers, especially housewives, to walk 2 to 4 km to get water from the farmlands.  Whilst water sources are getting depleted, the ones left are dirty and polluted.

Villagers also suffer economically as their animals and crops died and withered from the lack of water, leading to the loss of livestock and crops and a decrease in food production. 

CEDAR Fund allocated US$20,000 (approx. HK$156,000) to support its partner organisation in India, EFICOR, operating at three locations: the Damoh and Barwani regions in Madhya Pradesh and the Pratapgargh region in Rajasthan.  In total, 450 families received assistance to get through the difficult period (the entire partnership programme supported 1500 families with either low income or members with disabilities and ailments).  According to data from the India Meteorological Department, these regions are made up of rocky and hilly landscapes within which heat would be accumulated, causing the temperature to be higher than in other areas.  Also, the annual rainfall in the past few years has been less than normal (i.e. an average of 1200 mm), recording an average of just 845 mm and leading to a lowered groundwater table of 400-850 feet on average. This makes the villagers’ usual water collection points become even arider.