Kozhikode: As the Met department warned against a heat wave in the state, collectors in various northern districts have alerted schools to be extra careful while letting students outdoors. The authorities have prescribed dos and don'ts for school so as to safeguard students from abnormal heat.
In Kozhikode, collector S Sambasiva Rao issued a circular to the heads of the institutions to avoid outdoor activities including school assemblies.
“Hope everyone is aware of the heat wave alert of the meteorological department. Heat wave is announced when the maximum temperature in an area is 5-degree Celcius more than the average or when it is more than 40-degree Celcius. In Kozhikode, current temperature has recorded 3-degree Celcius more than the average. This extreme weather scenario is likely to create severe health issues and you are requested to take precautionary measures in the institutions,” the collector stated.
The collector also requested to avoid open assemblies in schools and all outdoor activities from 11 am to 3 pm. He also directed the schools to avoid polyester uniforms and permit students to wear light-coloured cotton fabrics in schools. Even if the students are not thirsty, the authorities should ensure that they drink enough water at regular intervals and arrange water kiosks on the school compound. They should also ensure the availability of Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) in case of emergency.
The classrooms should be properly ventilated and the heads of the institutions should ensure that there is enough number of fans inside every classrooms. Any picnic or trip to open areas should be avoided, the collector directed.
After the classes, everyday, the head of the institution should convene a meeting to review the situation as well as precautionary measures.
Students struck by heatstroke should be taken to nearby primary health centre or hospital for immediate medical attention. The students should be made aware of the first-aid measures to be taken in case of a sunstroke, the directive stated.
When is it a heat wave?
A period of excessively hot weather is called a heat wave. The criteria to declare it may vary in different countries and climatic zones. The Indian Meteorological Department declares a heat wave "if maximum temperature of a weather station reaches at least 40°C or more for plains, 37°C or more for coastal stations and at least 30°C or more for hilly regions". often any rise in temperature by 4.5°C to 6.4°C from the normal calls for declaring a heat wave in India.
Severe heat wave is announced when the temperature shoots up above 6.4°C from the normal.
Near-drought scenario
Parts of Kerala are already under the grip of a drought-like situation. The Banasurasagar reservoir and its catchment areas in Wayanad have dried up just seven months after water rose to dangerous levels.
The reservoir which had to be opened at short notice due to an alarming rise in water level in August now holds just 38 per cent of its storage capacity. The water level in the reservoir was 766 metres above sea level at the beginning of March last year. The current level is four metres below year-earlier levels even after the heavy downpour in August. The reservoir's catchment areas received four times rainfall in 2018 than the previous year. Areas close to the reservoir are staring at water shortage.
The Wayanad district administration had asked the dam officials to release water to address a water shortage in the Padinjarethara area. The other parts of the district have also recorded high temperatures. The average temperature hovered around 32 degree here in the past year, according to the recordings made at the Ambalavayal Agricultural Research Centre. People are forced to stay indoors due to the heat.
Meanwhile, the Kerala Hotel and Restaurant Association has set up free water and juice kiosks in front of almost all the hotels in the city. Public may use the kiosk to refresh themselves.
