Schools across Delhi and in about half of India’s 28 states were ordered to close from mid-May until the end of June as heatwaves that began in April push classes online for weeks at a time. Forced closures are disproportionately forcing working mothers to stay home, shoulder unpaid childcare, or move into lower-paid, more flexible jobs, eroding women's labor-force participation. New research shows heatwaves combined with worsening ozone pollution are raising the true burden of heat-related illness in India. Prolonged school shutdowns and lost income are amplifying gender and economic inequality and show how climate extremes are reshaping schooling and labor markets in the world’s most populous country.
