Panjim: Heat exposure caused an estimated loss of 193 billion potential labour hours annually in India between 2016 and 2025, 75% higher than the annual average in the 1990s, according to the latest Countdown report by Lancet. In 2025, potential earnings lost because of heat-related reductions in labour capacity were equivalent to 4.2% of India’s GDP, compared with 0.91% globally.Published on October 27, the 10th edition of the ‘Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change’, prepared in collaboration with the World Health Organization and led by University College London, also noted that half of the heatwave days experienced by people in India between 2016 and 2025 were directly attributable to climate change.Scientists associated with the report called for climate change to be formally recognised and addressed as a global health emergency and for health to shape both climate policies and funding priorities to prevent it. The reportThe Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change is an annual assessment of how climate change affects human health and how climate action can help protect it. The 2026 report tracks 54 indicators across five areas: health hazards and impacts; adaptation and resilience; mitigation and health benefits; economics and finance; and public and political engagement. These include indicators measuring exposure to heatwaves, heat-related deaths, lost work hours, sleep loss, drought, infectious disease risks, food security and the health costs of air pollution.Nearly 150 multidisciplinary scientists from more than 100 institutions across more than 30 countries worked to produce the 10th edition of the report which they published on October 27. This latest report includes four new indicators – covering the availability of water in land, healthcare sector greenhouse gas footprint assessments, climate-related health research funding, and legislative engagement with health and climate change. As per the report, heat was linked to 710,000 deaths worldwide in 2023, with 71.5% of these deaths attributed to climate change. Altogether, climate change is estimated to have caused almost 3 million heat deaths between 2016 and 2023.“The evidence is undeniable: climate change is one of the greatest threats to health facing humanity. Its impacts are already being seen through worsening heat stress, extreme weather events, food insecurity and disease,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization, in the report. “But this report also reminds us that the solutions are within reach. By placing health at the heart of climate policies, we can save millions of lives, build more resilient societies, and deliver a healthier future for all,” he added.The report finds that many health risks associated with climate change grew faster in the decade after the Paris Agreement was introduced than in the preceding decade. Although progress in clean energy, health systems and health-protecting legislation has delivered some benefits, the report says these gains have not kept pace with the growing health impacts of climate change.Climate change deepens India’s health burdenA separate country-wise factsheet as part of the report provided India-specific numbers.The report identifies rising temperatures as a major health threat in India, with consequences for mortality, illness, sleep, physical activity and people’s ability to work.Between 2016 and 2025, an average of 50% of the heatwave days experienced by people in India were directly attributable to climate change. Of the 10.6 heatwave days recorded annually on average, 5.3 were linked to climate change.But the effects extend beyond. Indians were exposed to more than 2,600 hours annually, on average, when heat posed a moderate or higher risk of heat stress during moderate outdoor activity, such as brisk walking. This was more than 200 hours above the annual average in the 1990s.High night-time temperatures also disrupted sleep. Between 2021 and 2025, people in India lost an estimated 64 hours of sleep annually because of high night-time temperatures, around three hours more than the annual average for 1986–2005.According to a report by The Indian Express, “The report [Lancet report] does not provide a standalone estimate of total heat-related deaths in India. However, the monetised value of heat-related mortality among people aged over 65 averaged US$33.8 billion annually during 2021–2025, a 205% increase compared with 2000–2004. Heat exposure caused an average annual loss of 193 billion potential labour hours in India during 2016–2025, 75% higher than the annual average in the 1990s.”Climate change increases disease risksChanging environmental conditions are also increasing the suitability for transmission of mosquito-borne and waterborne diseases in India, the report warns.The risk of dengue spreading through Aedes albopictus mosquitoes increased by 84% between 1951-1960 and 2016-2025. During this period, the risk rose from below to above the level at which transmission can occur. Another mosquito species that spreads dengue, Aedes aegypti, also had a high potential to spread the disease, with an average transmission level of 2.4 between 2016 and 2025.The number of months suitable for malaria to spread also increased. Compared with 1981-1990, the period from 2016 to 2025 saw a 19% increase in the number of months suitable for Plasmodium falciparum and an 18% increase for P. vivax, two parasites that cause malaria. Conditions were suitable for malaria transmission for an average of around four months each year.Along India’s coastline, conditions that allow Vibrio bacteria to spread increased by 27% compared with 1982-1991, reaching around 2,740 kilometres in 2025. Cases of vibriosis, an infection caused by these bacteria, nearly doubled over the comparison periods, reaching an average of about 97,500 cases a year.Coastal sea surface temperatures around India were also 0.4°C higher during 2023-2025 than the 1981-2010 average which could affect fish stocks.Toxic air, warming seas and mounting health risksWildfire smoke was linked to an average of 90,300 deaths a year in India between 2021 and 2025, up from 67,800 annually between 2003 and 2012. The report attributes part of this increase to population growth. The death rate linked to wildfire smoke also rose, from 5.8 to 6.3 per 100,000 people.Air pollution also took a heavy toll. Exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) was linked to more than 2.2 million deaths in India in 2023, a 22% increase from 2016. Fossil fuel use accounted for 38% of these deaths, with coal responsible for 67% of deaths linked to fossil-fuel-related air pollution.Household air pollution caused by polluting fuels was linked to around 617,000 deaths in 2023, down from 783,000 in 2016. The report estimates that premature deaths associated with air pollution cost India approximately US$517 billion in 2023, equivalent to 13.5% of the country’s GDP.The report presents a mixed picture of drought and water availability in India. Between 2021 and 2025, an average of 13% of the country’s land area experienced at least one month of extreme drought each year, down from 34% between 1981 and 1990.However, the number of months with low freshwater storage increased by 6.8% between 2006-2015 and 2016-2025. This suggests that even though fewer areas experienced extreme drought, India’s water-security challenges have not necessarily eased.Coastal communities faced additional risks from rising sea levels and warming marine waters. In 2025, approximately 18.2 million people in India, or 1.3% of the population, lived in areas less than one metre above sea level. These communities may be vulnerable to coastal flooding, displacement and disruption to essential services.Climate action has yet to keep paceDespite the growing health burden, the report identifies some progress in the global transition to cleaner energy.Investment in clean energy reached a record US$2.1 trillion in 2025, almost twice the amount invested in fossil fuels. Falling pollution from fossil fuels has also helped prevent an estimated 323,000 deaths annually in at least 77 countries where such air pollution has declined since 2016.However, fossil fuels continued to account for more than 80% of global energy supply. The report also found that the world’s 100 largest oil and gas companies were planning production levels for 2040 that would be 150% above those compatible with limiting global warming to 1.5°C.The report’s authors are urging governments to place health at the centre of climate decisions, including emissions-reduction targets and funding priorities.They also call for rapid and equitable cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, sustained investment in research and greater funding to help countries adapt to climate-related health risks.For India, the findings point to several interconnected challenges: protecting people and outdoor workers from extreme heat, reducing air pollution, strengthening disease surveillance, and improving preparedness for water-related and coastal risks.