Heatwaves in India are becoming increasingly frequent, intense, and prolonged due to climate change, with Bihar among the worst-affected states. In 2024 – one of the hottest years on record – Patna district faced extreme heat stress, resulting in severe health risks, loss of lives, and widespread disruption to daily life.
To address this, the Government of Bihar, in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), has launched the development of a Model Heat Action Plan for Patna district. This plan will provide district-specific, data-driven strategies to enhance resilience and preparedness for extreme heat events
Our Role
We are leading the technical development of this pioneering Heat Action Plan by. Our work includes:
- Hyper-Granular Risk Mapping: Using AI/ML-driven climatological and meteorological models to produce real-time, sub-district heat risk data from satellite and local monitoring inputs.
- Discomfort Index Estimation: Incorporating temperature, humidity, and urban heat island effects to assess human health vulnerabilities across Patna.
- Forecasting & Early Warning: Developing predictive tools and protocols to enable timely responses and reduce heat-related casualties.
- District-Level Action Framework: Designing tailored, cross-sectoral response plans involving health, urban planning, disaster management, and community outreach.
- Stakeholder Engagement & Capacity Building: Conducting consultations and training to strengthen readiness among local authorities and first responders.
This initiative will not only enhance Patna’s departmental disaster response capacity but also serve as a model for replication in other Indian states seeking to embed disaster resilience within departmental governance structures.
