India’s heatwave kills at least 53 people, leaves nearly 25,000 with heat strokes

Nearly 25,000 people have suffered suspected heat stroke and 56 died after several heatwaves across India between March and May, local media reported, citing government data.

May has been a particularly bad month for the region, with temperatures in capital Delhi and nearby state of Rajasthan touching 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit).

In contrast, parts of eastern India have been reeling from cyclone Remal. Heavy rain in the north eastern state of Assam has killed 14 people since Tuesday.

Cities in the southern states of Karnataka and Kerala have also been inundated by heavy rains.

India’s tech hub of Bengaluru, in Karnataka, on Sunday received 111.1 millimeters of rainfall – the highest the city has seen in the month of June since 1891.

Local media footage showed vehicles and pedestrians wading through flooded streets in Bengaluru, with fallen trees blocking roads and massive traffic jams clogging major intersections.

In the island nation of Sri Lanka, at least 15 people have been killed by flooding and landslides after heavy monsoon rain lashed the region, the country’s Disaster Management Centre said on Sunday.

A confluence of factors has led to a very hot summer in South Asia, a trend scientists say has been worsened by human-driven climate change.

At least 33 people, including election officials on duty in India’s just-concluded general election, died of suspected heatstroke in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the north, and Odisha in the east on Friday.

Data from the National Centre of Disease Control showed that the situation was worst in May, with 46 heat-related deaths and 19,189 suspected heat stroke cases, news website The Print reported.

Including suspected cases, the total number of deaths in India could be much higher at 80, newspaper The Hindu reported.

Over 5,000 cases of heat stroke were reported in the central state of Madhya Pradesh alone.

The weather office has predicted that heat will be less severe till Wednesday and an early arrival of monsoon in the southern state of Kerala last week is expected to bring more relief.