State Hikes Ex Gratia to Sun Stroke Victims to Rs 4 Lakh

Hyderabad: The government has declared heat waves and sun strokes suffered by people as a state-specific disaster. This will enable the families of sun stroke victims in the state to receive an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh, up from Rs 50,000 previously.

Since heat waves were not declared as a state-specific disaster, financial assistance of Rs 50,000 was being provided under the Apathbandhu scheme to the families of those losing their lives due to sun strokes. In its orders issued on Tuesday, the revenue (disaster management) department said that people affected due to heat wave ere mainly those who work outside during the peak summer or from the vulnerable groups such as the old and the government was of the view that the existing financial relief was not sufficient.

The revised ex gratia will be disbursed from the State Disaster Relief Fund after designated officials — in the districts either from the health department or others as specified by the collectors, and, in the case of the GHMC limits, the commissioner —certifying that a death was a result of sun stroke.

The government said during last year’s summer months, 28 of the 33 districts had experienced at least 15 heat wave days, with Nalgonda, Mancherial and Peddapalli recording 30 days. These conditions were further exacerbated in urban areas due to “urban heat island impact, and wet bulb (a combination of heat and humidity) effect.

“People, especially construction workers and daily wage earners in Hyderabad, Warangal, and all the municipal corporations, and the Hyderabad urban agglomeration, and all the urban local bodies are vulnerable to heat waves and sun strokes,” the orders said.

GO Ms NO. 5 of the revenue (disaster management) department’s special chief secretary Arvind Kumar, follow the 2025 summer advisory from the IMD warning of above normal number of heat wave days during April, May, and June.

Tuesday’s order designating heat waves — described as a “hidden hazard” by the government — as “state specific disaster,” was a first step towards establishing well-defined norms for determining heat wave impact on human health and deaths resulting from sun strokes. Because of lack of such norms, “mortality related to heatwaves is known to be significantly under-counted,” the orders said.

Infograph

When is heat wave declared?

A period when local excess heat accumulates over a sequence of unusually hot days and nights

IMD says heat wave needs to be considered when maximum temperature reaches at least 40º Celsius, and there is a temporary upward maximum from the normal by 5-6ºC

Severe heat wave conditions apply when this deviation is 7ºC or more

If maximum temperature hits 45ºC, irrespective of deviations from normal, heat waves should be declared