Climate crisis is now a health crisis: Illness from dirty air costs 2% of GDP

What was once framed as an environmental challenge is increasingly showing up in hospital wards, maternity clinics and workplaces across the country.

In Short

• Climate change is causing health losses across India
• Heat exposure led to 160 billion lost labour hours in 2021
• Air pollution costs India about 2% of GDP annually

Climate change is no longer just an environmental concern, it is now translating to health loss for India.

What was once framed as an environmental challenge is increasingly showing up in hospital wards, maternity clinics and workplaces across the country.

It is impacting how people fall sick, how long they can work, and how vulnerable communities survive.

A new report warns that rising temperatures, air pollution and climate-linked stress are beginning to strain India’s public health systems while also affecting the country’s economic productivity.

The report, Under the Weather: India’s Climate-Health Intersections and Pathways to Resilience, was launched by the two organisations ClimateRISE Alliance and Dasra during Dasra Philanthropy Week 2026.

It argues that the effects of climate change can no longer be viewed in isolation.

Instead, the report frames climate stress as a force that is increasingly intertwined with health risks, livelihoods and economic resilience.

HEAT, POLLUTION AND LOST PRODUCTIVITY

One of the starkest findings relates to the economic toll of rising heat.

According to the report, India lost an estimated 160 billion labour hours in 2021 due to heat exposure. That loss is equivalent to 5.4% of the country’s GDP, highlighting how extreme temperatures are beginning to affect productivity at a national scale.

Air pollution adds another layer to the burden. Health losses linked to polluted air are estimated to cost about 2% of India’s GDP each year, the report notes.

Taken together, the findings suggest that climate change is quietly reshaping the country’s economic outlook through its effects on workers’ health and physical capacity.

HEATWAVES AND HEART RISKS

The health consequences are equally worrying.

The report links heatwaves to an 11.7% increase in the risk of cardiovascular-related deaths. This is quick concerning because heart disease already accounts for nearly one-third of all deaths.

Extreme heat also appears to be affecting maternal health.

Over the past five years, pregnant women in India experienced an average of six additional days of dangerously high temperatures each year.

Research cited in the report associates heatwaves with a 16% rise in the likelihood of preterm birth, as well as links to stillbirth and higher rates of newborn hospitalisation.

These patterns point to a growing body of evidence that climate exposure can influence outcomes across the life course — from pregnancy to chronic disease in adulthood.

CLIMATE RISK AND INEQUALITY

The report stresses that climate-related health risks do not affect everyone equally.

Women, children, informal workers and rural populations are among those most exposed to heat and environmental stress, particularly when access to healthcare or safe working conditions is limited.

In this sense, climate change acts as a multiplier of existing inequalities, worsening health risks for those who are already vulnerable.

For example, outdoor workers, such as construction labourers or agricultural workers, face prolonged exposure to extreme heat. At the same time, rural communities with weaker healthcare infrastructure may struggle to cope with rising disease burdens.

NEED FOR INTEGRATED ACTION

As India continues to grapple with rising temperatures, air pollution and increasingly erratic weather patterns, the intersection between climate and health is becoming harder to ignore.

The report argues that addressing these challenges requires a shift in how climate and health policies are designed.

Rather than treating them as separate sectors, it calls for integrated climate-health strategies that strengthen public health systems while also building resilience in communities.

- Ends