Jan. 9: A cold wave swept through South Dinajpur and Malda districts, claiming at least 12 lives in the past 48 hours. Unofficial sources, however, put the toll much higher.
Residents in both the districts went into a huddle as the mercury plummeted to 5.4 degree Celsius today, the lowest temperature recorded here in the last 30 years according to officials at the Malda Met office. The temperature-slide would continue for at least two more days, they predicted.
A housewife was severely burnt when she got too close to a mud oven at Baidyanathpara in Balurghat this morning. She was admitted to the Balurghat hospital, where her condition has been stated as critical.
Police said Mukti Sarkar (26) was enjoying the warmth of the hearth when her synthetic saree caught fire. No one was present in the house when the accident took place.
Hearing her screams, the neighbours rushed to her rescue.
Four persons, most of them elderly people, died in South Dinajpur last night.
Among them were 70-year-old Alodeb Saharma who died at Kantadanga, 65-year-old Ananta Hansda, a resident of Anantapur under Gangarampur police station, 48-year-old Mohammad Mostaq of Hatnadangi and another elderly woman of Sibrampur.
The cold wave, which has been lashing Malda district, has made life miserable for people, especially for the pavement dwellers.
The condition of the patients in the hospitals and prison inmates is no better.
The blanket, provided to them by the authorities, was not warm enough to fight the cold, they complained.
Last night, Naren Mondal (76) and Tarun Mondal (85) died at Bhutnidwip in the district. A two-year old child died in Malda town this morning..
District magistrate Ashok Bala said the development officers of all the 15 blocks in the district had been given 100 blankets and some woollen garments for distribution among the poor.
The animals in the district’s only deer park at Adina forest are also suffering. “More and more deer are falling ill. A veterinarian has been engaged to look after them, but we are at a loss about how to tackle the situation,” said Malda divisional forest officer Debiprasad Sarkar.
