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Wednesday, Jun 22, 2005

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Other States - Uttar Pradesh

Scorching heat claims more lives in North

Many towns record 47 degrees Celsius; Met office forecast some rain in Bihar, Jharkhand

LUCKNOWPATNACHANDIGARHRANCHIJAIPUR: Heat wave conditions sweeping Uttar Pradesh claimed nine more lives on Tuesday taking the toll in the State to 88. The brief spell of thunderstorm and drizzle in the State Capital and a few other districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh last night failed to provide respite from the scorching heat.

Five persons died due to scorching hot winds and other heat-related ailments in Varanasi, besides three in neighbouring Chandauli and one in Jaunpur, reports reaching here said.

The maximum temperature of 47 degrees Celsius was recorded in Varanasi (airport), followed by 46 degrees each in Allahabad, Sultanpur, Kanpur, Bahraich, Lucknow and Mahoba, 44 degrees in Jhansi and 37 degrees in Gorakhpur, according the met office.

Barring the possibility of dust storm or thunderstorm at isolated places in the State, the met office has forecast no change in the prevailing weather conditions during the next 24 hours.

LUCKNOWPATNACHANDIGARHRANCHIJAIPUR: The toll in the recent spell of heat in Bihar has risen to 43, with 22 more deaths reported from different parts of the State since Sunday.

An Aurangabad report said that 10 persons died of sunstroke in Madanpur, Nabinagar and Aurangabad town since Sunday.

An official report from Bhojpur said that at least nine people, including two undertrials of the Ara divisional jail, lost their lives in the same period due to the heat wave.

Three other deaths were reported from Begusarai and Samastipur since Monday.

After experiencing gruelling heat for the past 10 days, the people can look forward to some comfort with the weather office forecasting rains by Wednesday.

The temperature in Patna that had shot up to 46 degree Celsius on Sunday came down to 40 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. Temperature in Gaya also came down to about 41 degrees Celsius.

In Patna, the ongoing strike by the junior doctors in Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) has added to the woes of the people. About 30 patients affected by sunstroke have been admitted to the hospital.

Due to the prevailing heat, the state government has extended summer vacations in schools till July 1.

LUCKNOWPATNACHANDIGARHRANCHIJAIPUR: Five persons died due to heat wave conditions in Punjab and Haryana, the first victims of the scorching heat sweeping the two northern States this summer. There was no respite for people in the region as temperatures stayed over the 40 degrees Celsius mark on the longest day of the year.

Three persons succumbed to heat in Bathinda district of Punjab while another two died in heat-related incident in Faridabad district of Haryana during the past two days, reports reaching here said.

Though maximum temperatures dropped by a degree at many places in the region since Monday, the heat continued to be unbearable and power cuts at many places in Punjab and Haryana added to the miseries of the people.

Amritsar braved intense heat at 44.2 degrees Celsius, four degrees above normal. Most of the Punjab towns were unbearably hot, with Patiala recording a high of 42.6 degrees Celsius, three above normal while the high at Ludhiana was 43.4 degrees Celsius, up two degrees, according to the met department.

Chandigarh also had a hot day recording a four degrees above normal maximum at 43.2 degree celsius, up four degrees. Ambala also had a hot day recording a high of 43.6 degrees Celsius, up four while Karnal had a high of 43.2 degrees Celsius, four above the normal range.

LUCKNOWPATNACHANDIGARHRANCHIJAIPUR: Rains swept most parts of Jharkhand bringing down day temperature even as three persons succumbed to the heat wave in the State. Official sources said one person died of sunstroke in Dumka and two others in Latehar since last week.

``The family members of the victims, if any, are not coming up with such reports. So how can we know about it,'' Dhanbad Deputy Commissioner Billa Rajesh said when asked about media reports of 24 deaths in Dhanbad.

The sky remained cloudy with reports of rains in some places after the State sizzled for days under the heat.

Ranchi recorded a comparatively lower 37.5 degrees Celsius, a drop by four degrees compared to Sunday. Garwah registered 44 degrees Celsius while Hazaribag experienced 40 degrees Celsius.

LUCKNOWPATNACHANDIGARHRANCHIJAIPUR: Despite pre-monsoon showers, the blistering heat wave continued unabated in Rajasthan affecting normal life in the entire State with mercury touching 47 degrees Celsius in Sriganganagar.

Jaisalmer was lashed with pre-monsoon showers in the evening and Kota and Ajmer experienced slight drizzle.

Rest of the State reeled under intense heat wave conditions with the mercury soaring between 43 and 45 degrees Celsius at many places in Kota, Churu, Bikaner, Jaipur and Jodhpur districts, a met official said.

A high-speed squall hit Jaipur and brought down the mercury suddenly from 44 degrees Celsius to 39, he said.

The South West monsoon might knock Kota and Jhalawar districts later this weekend, according to a forecast. -- UNI, PTI

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Scorching heat claims more lives in North