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Women and children of Kanke brave the scorching heat in Ranchi on Monday. Picture by Hardeep Singh
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The heat has started taking a toll on residents of Ranchi and its adjoining areas though the worst of the summer is not here yet.
A steady stream of people suffering from heatstroke has been landing up in hospitals around the capital over the last 10 days. Though no loss of life due to heat-related ailments have been reported from Ranchi so far, unconfirmed reports said two women died due to the heat at a Mandar village, 35km away from the capital, on Sunday.
“For the last 10 days, we have been getting three to four patients suffering from heatstroke in our hospital everyday, though so far no one has had to be admitted,” said S.K. Choudhary, superintendent of RIMS.
Though the maximum temperature in the capital touched 40°C on April 9, for the last 10 days it has been hovering around 37°C.
The minimum temperature too has been around 22 to 23°C, giving little respite from the suffocating heat at night.
RIMS apart, other hospitals too reported treating two to three heatstroke patients everyday.
“No one has been admitted yet. But, we have treated many heatstroke patients over the last one week,” said A.K. Jha, deputy superintendent of Sadar Hospital in Ranchi.
The soaring mercury has thrown life out of gear in the city, with the roads remaining virtually empty in the afternoons. The only ones cashing in on the adverse weather condition are the soft-drinks and juice sellers, who have mushroomed all over the city.
Speaking about the heat-related deaths, Budmu villager Mohan Oraon said one Gagi Devi (32) and Jeevan Devi (50) had gone to a nearby forest to collect firewood in the afternoon.
They came back complaining of uneasiness and died in the evening.
Meanwhile, doctors in Ranchi said a person venturing out in the sun should drink a lot of water and also be adequately covered.
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