40 heat-related deaths including that of 25 poll officials reported as heatwave intensifies in UP, Bihar

As many as 40 heat-related deaths were reported on May 31, majorly from northern states, of which at least 25 deaths were of election officials deployed on Lok Sabha poll duty in UP and Bihar.

Large swathes of India continue to reel under intense heat as temperatures remain above 40 degrees Celsius.

The maximum number of fatalities was recorded from Uttar Pradesh (17), followed by Bihar which reported 14 deaths. Five heat-related deaths were reported from Odisha while four were reported from Jharkhand, where officials said more than 1,300 people are hospitalized with heatstroke conditions.

In Bihar, where the mercury crossed 44 degrees Celsius, 10 officials on election duty died due to heatstroke reported from Bhojpur, Rohtas, Kaimur and Aurangabad districts.

Uttar Pradesh officials said that at least 15 election staff members died due to suspected heatstroke, with 13 casualties reported in Mirzapur and two in Sonbhadra district. 

The Odisha government also said that an investigation is underway into 18 more deaths suspected to be due to heat-related illness.

The rising temperatures have also led to water scarcity in various parts of the country, including Delhi, where residents faced acute shortages with people waiting in long queues to get access to water for their daily needs.

Maximum temperatures are recorded around 50° C. On May 31, Delhi’s Ayanagar recorded 47°C; Kanpur IAF 48.2°C; Bhatinda airport 47.6°C; Titilagarh in Odisha 46.5°C; Sirsa in Haryana 47.8°C. 

Warm night conditions were also observed in parts of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh.

Earlier, Delhi's Mungeshpur locality reported a temperature rise of up to 52.9 degrees Celsius, marking a record-breaking temperature in the national capital. However, union minister Kiren Rijiju questioned the reading, calling it ‘very unlikely’.

Taking to social media platform X,  Kiren Rijiju said, "It is not official yet. A temperature of 52.3°C in Delhi is very unlikely. Our senior officials in IMD have been asked to verify the news report. The official position will be stated soon {sic}.”

The Union Minister of Earth Sciences asked the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) to verify the data of Mungeshpur weather station in Delhi, after which he shared an official statement of the weather agency which said, “Mungeshpur reported 52.9 degrees Celsius (127.2 Fahrenheit) as an outlier compared to other stations.”
This week, the IMD issued a red alert for the national capital, which has a population of more than 30 million people.

Meanwhile, worrying reports emerged from Nagpur that two of the four automatic weather stations (AWS) in the city showed temperatures measuring 54 and 56 degrees on May 27. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) official, however, clarified that it was likely erroneous data due to a sensor malfunction because of extreme heat,

“The report of 56 degrees Celsius temperature on May 30 is not correct and not declared officially. The nearby functioning AWS is at CICR, Nagpur and the maximum temperature on May 30 was 44 degrees Celsius,” Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) Nagpur said in a statement.

“Automatic systems may report erroneous readings due to various factors such as site conditions, damage of sensors or its protection shields,” the RMC in Nagpur said in a statement, adding that the May 30 reading was an outlier and not correct.

“Some of our scientists are telling us that automatic sensors can malfunction in very high temperatures or extreme weather,” said M Mohapatra, IMD director general. “We are studying all aspects of these records, the location, the machine, everything.” 

According to IMD, heat wave to severe heat wave conditions prevailed on May 31 in parts of north and central India, with maximum temperatures reaching 47-48°C in multiple locations. 

The weather body issued an orange alert, the second-highest level, for northwest, central and east India on June 1.

The escalating temperatures seem to be influenced by the heat coming from Rajasthan and increased radiation in open areas with minimal shade, said Mahesh Palawat, Vice President of Meteorology and Climate Change at Skymet Weather.

The IMD reported heatwave to severe heatwave conditions prevailing over many parts of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh, as well as in some parts of Bihar, east Madhya Pradesh, and isolated regions of Odisha and Jharkhand. 

Heatwave conditions also persisted in some parts of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Vidarbha, West Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh. However, the IMD forecasted that there may be some respite from these conditions over the next two-three days.