NEW DELHI, 11 May 2006 — A searing heat wave in India claimed the life of a German tourist, raising the death toll due to the oppressive heat conditions in the country to 44, news reports said yesterday.
The high temperatures in northern and central Indian states, including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, took another six lives, the Hindustan Times reported.
This included a German national who was found dead in a train in Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, 400 kilometers southwest of New Delhi, on Tuesday. The tourist was traveling from the southern Karnataka state to Delhi. Though an autopsy was being conducted to find the exact cause of death, excessive heat seemed to have claimed his life, a senior doctor told the PTI news agency.
Over 25 people have died in Uttar Pradesh, a state worst-affected by the heat wave. In eastern Orissa, 11 people have died of sunstroke. The heat-related deaths have been reported since May 5. Dust storms and rains also wreaked havoc in many towns and cities in northern India including Uttar Pradesh in the last two days. Though the dust storms and squalls brought temporary relief - bringing down the temperatures by as much as six degrees Celsius in some parts - five deaths were reported from Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.
Temperatures of more than 40 degrees Celsius were recorded in large swathes of northern, central and eastern India over the past week. Many towns, including the national capital New Delhi, saw their hottest days this summer with temperatures touching 45 degrees Celsius.
