News / India

At least 98 die as heatwave grips north India

Sunday, 18 June 2023 2:58 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 18 June 2023 3:22 PM ]

At least 98 people have died due to severe heat in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, India.

At least 98 people have died in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the last three days as the north of the country reels under an extreme heatwave.

Fifty-four people admitted to a hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia district died on June 15, 16 and 17, reports said on Sunday.

Some 400 people are presently being treated for various ailments aggravated by heat, according to health officials.

The situation is no different in the north Indian state of Bihar where nearly 44 people have died in the last 24 hours due to extreme heatwaves. At least 18 places in the state reel under a sweltering heat wave.

According to authorities, most of those who passed away were over 60 years of age and had preexisting health conditions, which might have been exacerbated due to severe heat.

“All the individuals were suffering from some ailments and their conditions worsened due to the extreme heat,” Ballia’s Chief Medical Officer Jayant Kumar told The Associated Press.

Authorities canceled leave applications of medical personnel in Ballia and provided additional hospital beds to accommodate the influx of patients.

Uttar Pradesh's health minister, Brijesh Pathak, said that the government has opened an investigation into the cause of death of “so many people” in Ballia.

"With large numbers of patients flooding the hospital, we are now facing a shortage of stretchers," an official told India Today, an Indian news website.

As per the Indian Meteorological Department, the maximum temperature in Uttar Pradesh exceeded 43 degrees Celsius on Sunday, which is 5 degrees above normal.

The mercury in at least 11 districts of Bihar surged past 44 degrees Celsius with a severe heatwave on Saturday.

"Heatwave to severe heatwave conditions are likely to continue over east, east-central, and east peninsular India during the next 3-4 days and gradual abatement thereafter," the Indian Meteorological Department said.

A study by World Weather Attribution, an academic group on climate change that examines the source of extreme heat, has found that a searing heat wave in April that struck parts of South Asia was made at least 30 times more likely.

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