Southasiadisasters.net, Issue No. 228 | January 2026

Co-editors: Laasya Khandavalli and Mihir R. Bhatt

Extreme heat is now a daily livelihood risk for small businesses in India’s small towns. This issue of Southasiadisasters.net highlights how simple, low-cost heat resilience measures—such as shade, ventilation, drinking water access, and flexible work timings—are helping street vendors, artisans, women workers, and informal businesses reduce heat stress and income loss.

Drawing on field experiences from 11 Indian towns, the publication shows that early, locally led cooling actions can prevent health impacts, protect livelihoods, and reduce long-term loss and damage. It brings together frontline voices, data-driven insights, and policy reflections to demonstrate that small resilience measures can deliver big impact when supported by timely finance, inclusive governance, and people-centred planning.

In This Issue:

1. Small Heat Resilience Measures: Big Impact in Small Towns and on Small Businesses in India
   Mihir R. Bhatt, All India Disaster Mitigation Institute, India

2. Extreme Heat on the Frontlines
   Laasya Khandavalli, AIDMI, India

3. UNDRR Initiatives on Extreme Heat
   AIDMI, India

4. Street Selling for Women
   Laasya Khandavalli, AIDMI, India

5. Five Questions to Think About Nature-Based Solutions for Extreme Heat in India
   AIDMI, India

6. Heat Resilience Building as Empowering: Findings from City Rewa
   Vaishali Tiwari, AIDMI, Madhya Pradesh, India

7. Small Support Creates Great Livelihood Opportunities
   Binapani Mishra, Secretary, Society for Women Action Development, Satyabadi, Odisha, India

8. Artisanal Experiences in the Heat
   Laasya Khandavalli, AIDMI, India

9. Building Heat Resilience: Small Businesses in Ernakulam
   Ashna MS, AIDMI, Kerala, India

10. A Plastic Sheet Against the Sun: Disrupting Kolkata’s Cycle of Heat Vulnerability
    Pratiti Sasmal, AIDMI, West Bengal, India

11. Ahmedabad City and Extreme Heat: Key Initiatives and Way Ahead for 2026
    AIDMI, India

12. Heatwaves and Ladakhi Sellers: Small Business on the Frontline of Resilience
    Tashi Yangdol, Ladakh, India

13. Loss & Damage Due to Extreme Heat: Lessons from AIDMI’s Experience in India
    AIDMI, India

14. Value Data and Finance in Managing Extreme Heat Risk and Adaptation: Emerging Findings from AIDMI
    Rohan Trivedi and Avani Panchal, AIDMI, India

15. Social Impacts of Green Finance Fund Support to Extreme Heat-Affected Small Business Owners in Ahmedabad
    Kalpesh Prajapati, AIDMI, India

16. Urgently Addressing Heat Exposure in India’s Workforce
    Akash Yadav, AIDMI, India

17. Night Shelters in Chennai: A Challenging Safety Net
    Prof. I. Arul Aram, Former Professor & Head, Dept. of Media Sciences, Anna University, Tamil Nadu, India

18. Locating Equity and Inclusion in Climate Policies and Heat Action Plans in Indian Cities
    Tamanna Dalal, Senior Research Associate, Adaptation and Resilience, Sustainable Futures Collaborative, India

19. Cooling Cities for the Summer of 2026: Actions, Institutions, and National Direction for India
    AIDMI, India

20. From Small Measures to Systemwide Resilience in India
    Mihir R. Bhatt, AIDMI, India