Not a luxury many Indians can afford: Nithin Kamath flags deep divide in access to cooling as India warms up

In India, air conditioning is no longer just a measure of comfort; Nithin Kamath, co-founder of Zerodha, pointed out that this is a socio-economic divide in a viral post reflecting India’s relentless warming trend.

Kamath noted that despite major advances in national electrification, access to cooling remains heavily concentrated among the wealthy. He argued that essential fans have done little to combat the modern climate crisis, exposing over 40% of the population in outdoor sectors such as agriculture to completely dangerous thermal shocks with no safety net.

‘Staying inside is a luxury…’: Nithin Kamath

Nithin Kamath said in his X post that India is constantly warming up. “Temperatures have been rising for decades, and unless humanity makes a dramatic course correction, it will be a one-way trip.”

He noted that all the heatwave deaths in the news were the result of relentless warming.

“You’ll see a lot of numbers floating around, especially the recent viral study showing that a single day of extreme heat in India caused roughly 3,400 excess deaths, and a five-day heatwave caused about 30,000 deaths,” Kamath said. “But the truth is we still don’t have good statistics on how many Indians have lost their lives due to heatwaves.”

The Zerodha co-founder emphasized that the majority of employment in India remains unregistered. “The number of people working in agriculture, construction, odd jobs and other outdoor work remains disproportionately high,” he said.

He also noted that India has come a long way, “but this is still the reality for a large number of Indians.” — “For many Indians, staying indoors when temperatures rise is not a luxury they can afford.”

‘Fans can only do so much’

Nithin Kamath also noted that there is profound inequality in access to cooling.

“Yes, having almost all of India electrified is a real achievement,” he said. “But access to air coolers, let alone air conditioning, remains low and mostly concentrated among higher-income people.”

“Fans do this only when the heat is this brutal,” Kamath said. “This is heat inequality.”

“People with good incomes can buy coolers and air conditioners. They can work from home and avoid the worst hours of the day. But this is a small subset of India,” he said.

‘The poorest Indians will be most affected’

Nithin Kamath highlighted that although the share of agriculture in India’s GDP has been steadily decreasing, more than 40% of Indians are still employed in agriculture.

“It is the real Indians who will be most affected by rising temperatures,” he said.

Kamath noted that many of the regions most exposed to climatic shocks such as El Niño and heat waves are also among the impoverished regions of northern India. “So those who will be hardest hit by rising temperatures will be the poorest Indians in regions that have yet to see real prosperity.”

‘Plant a tree’

Nithin Kamath called for systematic change but until then he urged people to plant trees wherever possible to make a small difference on a personal level.

“Unfortunately, this is a systemic crisis. Individual actions help, but they are not enough,” he said. “We need collective action not only at the country level but also at the global level. Climate change is not India’s problem, it is a global problem.”

“There is a lot of debate and controversy about whether India’s forest cover is increasing or decreasing. But when it comes to cities, we can see first-hand the loss of green cover,” he said. “Trees are cut down to make way for roads, houses, overpasses and buildings. The few trees that remain are often buried under pavements and concrete. This weakens them. This is one reason why trees often fall even after moderate rains.”

Kamath said there are some low-hanging fruit that can start to make a difference.

“If you have space, you can plant native species like neem, moringa, jamun, amla and curry leaves. These trees have deep roots and can survive better,” he said. “People often avoid planting trees because they worry that the roots will damage the foundations of their homes. But in many cases, this fear is exaggerated.”

“These are the little things that help,” he insisted, noting that the problem ultimately requires systemic, collective action on a global level.

“With the way the world is going, it’s very hard to have hope,” Kamath said. “Rising temperatures are a serious challenge. There are no easy explanations and certainly no easy solutions.”