What happens in India doesn't stay in India. Why this deadly heat wave has a wide reach
Impacts include drought, electricity shortages, crop uncertainty — all unlikely to stay within India's borders
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It's not just weather patterns and climate that are interconnected. Heat waves carry with them far-ranging effects, some that have no borders.
The most obvious, of course, is heat-related deaths. While there hasn't been an official count of deaths attributed to this heat wave, the last major heat wave, which occurred in 2015, is believed to have killed 2,500 people in India and another 1,100 in Pakistan. However, that number may be higher, as there has been some concern with the way India reports heat-related deaths.
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There's also serious damage to India's already-struggling agriculture sector.
"Wheat crops in major wheat growing belts have been severely affected. The pre-monsoon showers provide the much needed moisture to crops. That was missing, and high heat on top of that made the wheat crop particularly susceptible," said Mukherji.
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There have also been significant electricity issues, with rolling blackouts. Aside from people being unable to cool themselves off, the shortages affect farmers who need that electricity to irrigate their crops with electric tube wells and pumps, said Mukherji.
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