If there’s anything that’s getting people into a tizzy these days, it’s the blistering heat, which shows no signs of abating any time soon. The heat seems to be getting to the techies too, even though they spend a large part of the working day in the cool comforts of air-conditioned offices.
“The moment you step outside the office, though, the heat is so oppressive that you quickly become dehydrated even nauseous. It’s probably exacerbated by the fact that the body is not properly conditioned to the heat, given that it’s acclimatised itself to the air-conditioning inside. The heat makes me lethargic and it affects productivity in a field where work pressure, as it is, is very high. Also, who knows how these extremes of temperature will affect the body in the long run?” ponders Sreejith K., a software designer in Technopark. “I’m more worried about my wife and kids at home. I’m helpless when they call me during the day and tell me how much they are suffering in this heat...” he says. “The heat is really taking a toll on us mentally, emotionally and physically,” empathises Praveena K.V., a QA specialist in an MNC on campus.
Software developer Christena Sara Abraham also agrees and says that’s it’s come to a point where it’s become difficult to cope without an air-conditioner. “It’s bad for the environment and bad for your electricity bill, but what else do we do? The heat’s only going to get worse in the coming years. A lot of my friends and relatives have already brought A/Cs or at least are thinking of buying one,” says Christena. “Mondays to Fridays are alright because I will be at work. On Saturdays and Sundays, I usually go hang out in some air-conditioned department store or the other just to escape the heat,” she adds.
The going’s even tougher for software engineer Athira R. Kartha, who lives in a hostel near Technopark. “I can’t walk to work these days because it’s simply too hot. I end up get all sweaty even before the day has started, not to mention, tanned to a crisp. The nights are the worst, especially those nights when there’s a power cut in the hostel – a common enough occurrence. As a result the past several weeks now, it’s been one sleepless night after the other, which in turn is affecting my work,” she laments.
Technopark itself has taken a few measures to beat the heat. “The heat is not all that huge an issue on campus because we have good green cover and all the buildings are air-conditioned. We’ve not really had any complaints regarding it, so far. However, the most affected are support staff, particularly gardeners, sweepers and the like and we have asked them not to work during peak hours – 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.,” says Abhilash D.S., Assistant Manager, HR and Administration at Park Centre. Also, Park Centre had sent a circular to companies requesting them to cut back on their water use. “We are completely dependant on Kerala Water Authority for our water needs and we are facing a slight shortage on account of a burst pipeline. If everyone is vigilant, we should be fine until the monsoons,” adds Abhilash.
