Heat Wave Hits South Indian State, 765 Dead

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, June 01, 2003

Heat Wave Hits South Indian State, 765 Dead

The scorching heat wave has hit south India's Andhra Pradesh in the past two weeks, claiming 765 lives till Saturday.

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The scorching heat wave has hit south India's Andhra Pradesh in the past two weeks, claiming 765 lives till Saturday.

State relief commissioner D.C. Roshaiah said Saturday that 765 deaths were reported from 19 of the state's 23 districts in the last fortnight.

More than 100 deaths were reported over the last 24 hours and the toll might increase, he added.

The temperature in most parts of the coastal districts and Telangana region in the state is hovering around 47 degrees Celsius with some towns even recording temperatures above 48 degrees Celsius.

This is the second successive year that Andhra Pradesh is in the grip of a severe heat wave, which killed 1,037 people in 2002.

Nalgonda district has recorded the highest deaths at 131. Guntur registered 114 casualties followed by West Godavari and East Godavari with 106 and 103 deaths.

For the second time in May, Hyderabad, the capital of the state,recorded a temperature above 43 degrees Celsius on Friday. Vijayawada city in Krishna district was the hottest place, recording the season's highest temperature of 48.7 degrees CelsiusFriday.

The weather office has warned that there was no sign of any respite in the next 48 hours.

Villages in Nalgonda were wearing a deserted look and deafeningsilence envelopes the normally bustling habitations as the mercuryhovers around 45 degrees Celsius.

"We are remaining indoors to escape the sun as we have seen many people dying of sun stroke," said Ashaiah, a 55-year-old farmlaborer in the Darveshpuram village, 15 km from Nalgonda town.

Seventy-year-old Sunil Reddy said he had never seen such a harsh summer. "I don't recall if I have seen such a hot sun," saidReddy.

Most of the killed in this district are poor farm laborers, rickshaw pullers or other daily wage earners, who have to venture out in the heat to earn a living.

The severe drought, and drinking water and electricity shortagehave made things worse.

The state government has already announced that families of people who died of the heat would be eligible to financial assistance of 10,000 rupees each under the National Family BenefitScheme.

Officials conceded this was the reason the authorities were taking a long time to confirm deaths.

The Hyderabad Meteorological Centre Saturday again extended theheat wave warning by two more days.

Its director C.V.V. Bhadram said that dry weather was likely toprevail all over the state through the period.

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