May 27, 2026
Nithin Belle, Khaleej Times
Khaleej Times reports that more than 100 people have died “following the intense heatwave” in the southern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. It adds that “[m]ore than a dozen districts saw temperatures above 45C” in Andhra Pradesh, with temperatures “soar[ing]” over 48C in its East and West Godavari regions. According to ETV Bharat, Telangana’s Warangal registered 23 heat deaths, the highest in the region. While national crime record data says Telangana recorded 116 heat deaths in 2024, the state’s 2026 heatwave action plan “places the deaths at just 10 for the same period”, according to the New Indian Express, sparking concern that “the true human cost of extreme heat may remain invisible in official records”. In the neighbouring eastern state of Odisha, the state government confirmed that three people died of sunstroke, reports the New Indian Express.
Meanwhile, doctors tell the Independent that health impacts are “getting worse” because of record night-time temperatures, with Delhi recording “its warmest May night in almost 14 years” this week. As temperatures approach 46C in the capital today, authorities warn that heatwave conditions will continue over large parts of central and north-western India, says the Indian Express. According to Down to Earth, the current heatwave is pushing India’s power grid into “uncharted territory”, with “residential cooling demand now overtaking industrial demand growth in several regions”. An opinion piece in the Hindustan Times by health researchers argues that heat mortality is not caused by “temperature alone”, but “infrastructure design failure” and “severely limited access to cooling”.
Uma (in)certa antropologia 