Severe heat kills dozens in India’s Bihar state
Severe heat has left dozens dead over a 24-hour period in India's Bihar state, as the country enters a third week of searing temperatures, officials said Sunday.
The deaths occurred in three districts of the poor northern state, where temperatures have hovered around 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) in recent days, senior health official Vijay Kumar told AFP.
Forty-nine people died in three districts of the Magadh region that has been hit by drought, he said.
"It was a sudden development on Saturday afternoon. People affected by heatstroke were rushed to different hospitals," Kumar added.
"Most of them died on Saturday night and some on Sunday morning during treatment."
Kumar said about 40 more people were being treated at a government-run hospital in Aurangabad.
"Patients affected by heat stroke are still being brought, the death toll is likely to increase if the heatwave continues."
Most of the victims were aged above 50 and were rushed to hospitals in semi-conscious state with symptoms of high fever, diarrhea and vomiting.
Twenty-seven people died in Aurangabad district, 15 in Gaya and seven in Nawada district, officials said.
State Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has announced a compensation of 400,000 rupees ($5,700) for the family of each victim.
Harsh Vardhan, India's health minister, said people should not leave their homes until temperatures fall.
"Intense heat affects brain and leads to various health issues," he said.
Large parts of northern India have endured more than two weeks of sweltering heat. Temperatures have risen above 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) in the desert state of Rajasthan.
A heatwave in 2015 left more than 3,500 dead in India and Pakistan.
In 2017, researchers said South Asia, which is home to one fifth of the world's population, could see heat levels rise to unsurvivable levels by the end of the century if no action is taken on global warming.
(Source: AFP)
FM: India's national interest lies in selling arms to Israel
Pezeshkian says seeking to prevent conflict expansion as Modi blasts Israel’s genocide
Putin: BRICS, not the West, will drive global economic prosperity
Qassam Brigades claims killing 3 Israeli troops in northern Gaza
More alive than ever: Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's legacy grows stronger in martyrdom
Occupation of Syria’s highest peak Mount Hermon part of ‘Greater Israel’ project
Iran: Syrian people will decide their future without foreign interference
IRGC says Iran’s power exceeds borders, warns enemies to adjust themselves
Dozens detained, several wounded in Israeli raids in West Bank
‘Ethnic cleansing’: Hamas blasts Israeli attacks on Gaza hospital amid intl. silence
Saudi delegation meets HTS leader at presidential palace in Damascus
PressTV NEWSLETTER
now
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
