Extreme heat in Mumbai
A coastal megacity where the nights are heating faster than the days.
Heat type. Mostly humid coastal heat.
Heat action plan Parts in place, no full plan found
Mumbai’s 2022 Climate Action Plan names urban heat as a priority, and the city is working with C40 on heat-health protocols for its hospitals. No standalone city heat action plan found.
Vicious cycles the evidence ties to Mumbai
| Cycle | Why here | One action that breaks it |
|---|---|---|
| The sleepless-nights loop | Mumbai gained 15 very warm nights a summer over the last decade. | Cool nights and support |
| The energy-poverty trap | Tin-roofed informal settlements trap heat for people who can’t afford to cool. | Free care for heat illness |
| The invisible-deaths loop | Death certificates usually record the immediate cause, so heat as the trigger goes unrecorded. | Count every heat death |
Who heat hits hardest here
- People in informal settlements
- Workers in heat-exposed jobs
A worked plan to learn from
Thane’s ward-by-ward heat action plan (Thane, India, 2024 onwards)
Already at work here
- WRI India
- C40 Cities
- HDFC Life (Swabhimaan CSR)
- ICLEI South Asia
Listing does not imply partnership, affiliation or endorsement.
Four questions for Mumbai’s heat plan
- Is it funded, with a named owner?
- Does it assess who is most vulnerable, and where they live?
- Does it have legal backing, so departments are required to act?
- Does it count indoor and night-time heat, not only daytime highs?
Official warnings: India Meteorological Department · Today’s heat and the week ahead: beattheheat.asia/#city-mumbai
Sources
- Citizen Matters. citizenmatters.in/mcap-climate-change-heat-mumbai
- C40 Cities, 2026. c40.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/RfP-Heat-Health-protocols-for-Mumbai.pdf
- Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), 2025. ceew.in/sites/default/files/ceew-how-extreme-heat-is-impacting-india-final-web-file.pdf
- Sustainable Energy for All, 2023. seforall.org/our-work/research-analysis/chilling-prospects-series/chilling-prospects-global-access-to-cooling-gaps-2023
- Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, reply in India’s Rajya Sabha, 2024. rsdebate.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/750681/1/PQ_265_06082024_U1693_p358_p362.pdf
- Centre for Policy Research, 2023. cprindia.org/briefsreports/how-is-india-adapting-to-heatwaves-an-assessment-of-heat-action-plans-with-insights-for-transformative-climate-action