Under the Sweltering Sun

Written by Madhuri Sharma

In the summer of 2017, I stood with my sister waiting to catch a bus near our home and we came up with a silly poem called “under the sweltering sun” which eventually became an inside joke between the two of us. The both of us weren’t aware how true that would come to be seven years later in 2024, when we faced the hottest summer Bengaluru had had in decades. Crises were rampant everywhere, water shortages and power cuts, and the heat wave causing sickness.
The 2024 Bengaluru summer wasn’t just hot; it was brutal. Everyone in the city was feeling the pressure. The heat became a shared experience and a stark reminder that something was seriously wrong.
This extreme weather isn’t just a Bengaluru problem, it’s a global one. Climate change is no longer a distant threat; it’s happening now, impacting everyone, everywhere. From record-breaking temperatures to more frequent and intense natural disasters, the signs are undeniable. The sweltering sun isn’t just a line in a poem anymore, it’s a symbol of the urgent need for action. We need to acknowledge the reality of climate change and work together to find solutions before it’s too late.