India, Feb. 21 -- Two new initiatives to protect South Asians from extreme heat - a rapidly escalating threat to human health and economic stability in the subcontinent - were launched on Friday during Mumbai Climate Week, officials said.

The South Asia Climate-Health Desk, established as part of the WHO-WMO Climate and Health Joint Programme and implemented with the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), India Meteorological Department (IMD), and other partners, will improve how climate and weather information is translated into action to protect people's health.

Complementing this work, the South Asia Scientific Research Consortium, supported through a Rockefeller Foundation grant to the Indian Institute of Science Education...