Heatwave impact: India Inc adopts WFH, safety steps

As extreme heatwaves intensify across India, companies are reworking everything from office routines to frontline operations, rolling out flexible and reduced work hours, work-from-home options, cooling measures and on-ground rest points for both office staff and outdoor workers.

Companies like Mercedes-Benz, NoBroker.com and Savills India are offering work-from-home options, while delivery players like Eternal Group are equipping dark stores with air coolers and water dispensers and distributing glucose sachets to ensure delivery partners’ health and well-being.

Also Read: India’s heat wave creates new inflation risks after oil surge


Many companies are offering a combination of work from home and reduced office work hours, Aditya Mishra, chief executive of staffing firm CIEL HR, told ET.

Firms in logistics, staffing, and retail spaces are increasing workforce deployment and expanding dark store networks to reduce travel distances and ease the burden on delivery personnel, he added.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned of persistent heatwave conditions across the country between April and June, with temperatures staying significantly above normal in many parts in the coming weeks.

"To minimise exposure to extreme weather conditions during the summer, we are encouraging work-from-home wherever feasible," said Santosh Iyer, managing director and CEO of Mercedes-Benz India. "Additionally, our office cafeterias are providing healthy cold beverages throughout the working hours to support hydration."

Engineering and construction company KEC has "restricted outdoor working from 11 am till 3 pm across most of the sites, keeping in view the intensity of heat and humidity at the location," a company spokesperson said.

Also Read: Delhi rolls out heatwave action plan; work breaks from 1–4 pm for outdoor labourers, ORS for students, water points across city

KEC is also providing coolers and puff panels in workmen camps and cold drinking water at all work sites and camps, besides supplying buttermilk, ORS, and glucose water to prevent dehydration and heat strokes. It is using thermal guns to monitor temperatures, the person said.

An Eternal spokesperson said delivery partners onboarded on Zomato have access to 5,000+ rest points across India through collaborations with restaurants. The group has also tied up with companies such as TVS and Shell to ensure dedicated rest points for delivery partners at select service stations and fuel pumps.

Blinkit dark stores are being equipped for summer with pedestal fans, air coolers, benches, and water dispensers in place. Additionally, over 150,000 glucose sachets are being distributed daily to delivery partners, the spokesperson said.

Online fashion retailer Myntra has installed HVAC systems supported by occupancy-based thermal sensors to help maintain a steady ambient temperature and air-to-water generators in its offices. “Alongside this, we’ve expanded summer-friendly hydration options like buttermilk, coconut water and tulsi lime, and introduced matka water across the campus,” its chief HR officer Govindraj MK said.

A Flipkart spokesperson said it has implemented a series of summer mitigation measures “to ensure adequate availability of hydration and refreshment options for Wishmasters (delivery boys) across our hubs and during their routes.” The ecommerce marketplace is also working to enhance temperature regulation in the rest areas of delivery centres, the person said.

Real estate firm Savills India is running awareness campaigns through expert-led sessions covering early signs of heat-related illnesses, hydration and nutrition tips, appropriate clothing and sun protection as part of a ‘Wellness Wednesday’ initiative. “Alongside this, we continue to support flexible work arrangements, including work-from-home options where feasible, ensuring a balanced approach to both well-being and productivity,” said Kaushik Chakraborty, chief people officer at Savills India.

For employees who travel, including those who show houses to customers, real estate platform NoBroker.com has reduced the peak-temperature slots, its CEO and founder Amit Kumar Agarwal told ET.

“For office employees, more focus is on temperature control and introduction of cooling refreshments across the day in snacks/fridge along with travel flexibility,” Agarwal said.