South Asia experienced one of the most severe and protracted heatwaves in recent history during the summer of 2025. Across a significant portion of India and Pakistan, temperatures rose by 5 to 8 degrees Celsius above the average. This severe weather event not only shattered temperature records but also revealed the region’s alarming susceptibility to climate change.
A Scorching Reality
Millions of individuals encounter daily temperatures eclipsing 45°C (113°F) from Karachi to Lahore and Delhi to Rajasthan. The temperature in certain regions of southern Punjab and interior Sindh reached nearly 50°C, rendering outdoor activities nearly impossible. Schools were closed, outdoor activities were restricted, and hospitals experienced an increase in the number of patients experiencing cardiovascular distress, dehydration, and heatstroke. The cities, which were characterized by their lack of vegetative cover and heat-trapping concrete, were particularly affected. Urban homes were transformed into ovens as a result of inadequate urban planning, inadequate electricity access, and power disruptions, while rural areas were left without the necessary infrastructure to endure the oppressive temperatures.
The Motivating Factor: Climate Change
This inferno is not an isolated incident, as scientists and meteorological experts concur. It is a component of a more extensive pattern that is associated with anthropogenic climate change. Increasing global temperatures, which are being driven by greenhouse gas emissions, are resulting in more frequent and intense heatwaves, particularly in regions that are already heated, such as South Asia.
The subcontinent is warming at a rate that exceeds the global average, according to a collaborative study conducted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and South Asian climate laboratories. According to the Global Climate Risk Index, Pakistan is among the top 10 most vulnerable countries to climate change.
Extreme heat events that were previously rare and occurred once every 50 years are now expected to occur every 5 to 10 years. If emissions continue unabated, they could become an annual occurrence by the mid-century.
Effects on Lives and Livelihoods
The impact of the 2025 heatwave is not limited to mere discomfort:
• Health Crisis: Hospitals were overloaded. In a single week, over 1,200 cases of heatstroke were reported in Karachi alone. Children and the elderly were notably affected by the increased mortality rate in rural areas that lacked access to healthcare
• Heat exhaustion and diminished irrigation availability resulted in agricultural losses for crops including cotton, sugarcane, and wheat. This poses a hazard to the food security of a region that is already economically fragile.
• Economic Disruption: The increased risk of working under the sun resulted in the loss of days of income for outdoor laborers, including construction workers, farmers, and street vendors. The demand for electricity surged, resulting in blackouts and increased fuel import costs, and small businesses were particularly hard impacted.
• Urban Inequality: The inferno exposed the disparity between the wealthy and the impoverished. Millions of slum inhabitants endured suffocating heat without fans or water, while some households remained indoors in air-conditioned comfort.
A Call to Action for Policy Change
• This crisis serves as a wake-up call for the governments of Pakistan and India to increase their investments in climate resilience.
• Heat Action Plans: Although cities such as Ahmedabad and Lahore have initiated the development of heat action strategies, which include shaded public spaces, early warning systems, and emergency cooling shelters, implementation remains inconsistent.
• Urban Greening: Planning policies must prioritize the planting of trees, the development of green roofs, and the redesign of public spaces to mitigate the urban heat island effect.
• Water Security: It is imperative to enhance water storage, conservation, and equitable distribution in light of the frequent exacerbation of arid conditions by heatwaves.
• Renewable Energy: The expansion of electricity access to rural and low-income areas can be achieved by reducing dependence on fossil fuels through the investment in solar and wind energy.
• International Cooperation: Given that the climate crisis is transnational, collaborative initiatives in technology transfer, data sharing, and early warning systems can assist both nations in more effectively managing future disasters.
Conclusion:
If we fail to take decisive action on climate change, the 2025 inferno serves as a warning: what is to come? It is no longer a distant threat; it is present, blazing through our cities, crippling our economies, and endangering our people. South Asia must be the pioneer in sustainable development, resilience, and adaptation, not only for the sake of survival but also for a future in which heat does not equate to adversity.