‘My body can’t take it’: Brutal nighttime temperatures give Delhi residents little respite from India’s searing heatwave

New Delhi CNN —

Nights are getting uncomfortably and dangerously hotter in India’s capital as people in the world’s most populous nation feel little respite from unrelenting temperatures.

Northern India has endured a scorching summer, with one part of Delhi reaching 49.9 degrees Celsius (121.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in late May — the capital’s highest temperature on record.

But the stifling heat persists even after the blazing sun has set.

The city is cooling down by only 8.5 degrees Celsius at night compared to a 12.2 degrees cooling down in urban outskirt areas, a report published by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) last month tracking urban heat stress in Delhi has found.

The warmer nights deprive people of rest and recovery from long hours of exposure to oppressive heat, particularly for people without access to air conditioning.

Bicycle rickshaw driver Sagar Mandal told CNN that he’s been getting fewer passengers because people opt for air-conditioned taxis over open-air transport.

“My body can’t take it, but I have to keep cycling. We are used to physical labor, we aren’t complaining about that. But this heat is not normal, something has to change,” the 39-year-old, who pedals people around the city, said.

“No one cares if we live or die, no matter who you vote for this is a problem no one can solve,” he said.

Outdoor workers like Nikhil Kumar find no respite as the heat lingers on even at night.

Nikhil Kumar, an auto-rickshaw driver said his workdays are getting longer and tougher amid the heat.

“It doesn’t get any better at night, even at night I’m sweating, it rained a little last night but look how hot it is today, there’s no relief,” the 26-year-old driver said.

Hotter nights are a