Power outages in India and Pakistan today have worsened the situation for millions of people, already affected by the record heat wave that experts attribute to climate changereported AFP.
The unusually hot March and April boosted electricity consumption in India and especially in Pakistan. Power plants are experiencing a shortage of coal to meet demand.
There were power outages in several Pakistani cities last week, up to eight hours a day, and in rural areas, the voltage was halved in half the day.
“There is an electricity crisis across the country and a reduction in grid tensions,” said Energy Minister Huram Dastgir Khan, referring to the shortage and “technical glitches.”
In some parts of Pakistan, temperatures are expected to rise by 8 degrees above normal and reach 48 degrees on Wednesday, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Society.
Pakistan has issued a heat warning since the hottest March in 61 years, and parts of neighboring India have closed schools and deserted streets after the heat wave did not show weight loss today, officials said.
Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Climate Change and Senator Sherry Rehman called on federal and provincial authorities to take precautionary measures to deal with the heat wave, which has raised temperatures to 47 degrees in some parts of the country.
More than a billion people could be affected by the heat in the region, scientists have warned, linking the early onset of summer to climate change. For the first time, Pakistan is moving straight from winter to summer without a spring season, Rehman said.
Across South Asia, people are seeking refuge from the extreme heat, and the Delhi Meteorological Service has said climate change will not change for the next three days.
More and more people are getting sick from exposure to the heat, Indian doctors say. Heart attacks are currently more alarming than the expected fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
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