RECORD TEMPERATURES in northern India have claimed hundreds of lives in what is believed to be the hottest summer in the country since records began in the late 1800s.
The death toll is expected to rise, with experts forecasting temperatures approaching 50 degrees in coming weeks. More than 100 people are reported to have died in the state of Gujarat, where the mercury topped at 48.5 degrees last week. At least 90 died in Maharashtra, 35 in Rajasthan and 34 in Bihar.
Hospitals in Gujarat have been receiving about 300 people a day suffering from food poisoning and heat stroke, ministers said. Officials admit the figures are an underestimate as most of the casualties are found in remote villages.
Wildlife has also suffered with voluntary organisations in Gujarat reporting dozens of peacocks reported dead at a forest reserve in Uttar Pradesh. – ( Guardian service)