Reflective rooftop paint, open gardens: BMC hacks to beat the heat

Aapla Dawakhanas, Mumbai’s primary healthcare networks, were identified as heat relief centres where people can seek help during heat stress; many are air-conditioned and can monitor heat-related cases.

Officials acknowledged that while some ideas exist on paper—such as keeping gardens open in the afternoon—the garden department must implement them. They noted the 2025 report's green-shade proposal faced practical difficulties, with the Thane nets example cited as a risk that prevented Mumbai adaptation.

Activist Shweta Damle called for additional support for marginalised workers, suggesting cool shades, water fountains (pyaus), sprinkling roads to reduce temperatures and pollution, and providing electrolyte powders at healthcare centers.

The report also recommended high-albedo or reflective materials for pavements and rooftops, porous and permeable paving solutions, and expanding green cover, along with prioritising shaded streets near markets and public transit hubs.

The Environment and Climate Change Department proposed to the Garden Department that gardens remain open in the afternoons to provide relief for residents.

The BMC is set to introduce heat-reflective paints for the roofs of its civic properties, expanding beyond a planned pilot in the G South ward to a citywide implementation.

The neighbouring city of Thane implemented green nets on a few streets last summer; motorists feared they could collapse, and the idea was abandoned and not replicated in Mumbai.

The 2025 heat action report proposed green shades over street junctions as a heat mitigation measure, but officials indicated the idea was not taken up due to practical difficulties.