Nagpur is paying a heavy price for rapid concretisation.
As the city’s mercury touches 46-47 degrees Celsius every summer, climate experts are warning that unchecked cement road construction is not just making Nagpur unbearably hot — it is also quietly draining the city’s groundwater reserves.Climate researcher Prof. Suresh Chopane points to cementation as the primary driver of Nagpur’s rising temperatures.
Cement surfaces heat up faster than asphalt and retain that heat far longer, keeping temperatures elevated well past midnight — a phenomenon known as ‘warm nights’. Coupled with rampant tree felling, construction dust, and vehicular pollution, the city has turned into what experts describe as a concrete furnace.The threat does not end at heat. Prof. Chopane warns that cement roads prevent rainwater from percolating into the soil. Instead, water rushes directly into rivers and drains — or into people’s homes — without recharging the groundwater table.
If the trend continues unchecked, Nagpur could face a severe water crisis in the coming years.“If we reduce cement roads, prioritise tar surfaces, stop felling large trees, and enforce strict laws against tree cutting — all simultaneously — Nagpur can become green again and residents will find relief from this unbearable heat,” Prof. Chopane said.
Experts have outlined a clear set of remedies: scale back cement road projects, revive traditional tar roads, halt large tree felling, invest in plantation and tree care, focus greening efforts on barren land, develop dense forest belts around the city, introduce stringent penalties for unauthorised tree cutting, and run government-led public awareness campaigns on environmental protection.
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