Storms Leads to Deaths and Crop Damage
Heavy thunderstorms in the central regions of the country have led to a number of deaths in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat. it has also lead to massive destruction of crops
Thunderstorms, accompanied with dust, affected the West, Central, and Northern parts of India, causing disturbances in the weather, which affected the region over the past two days.
Most deaths have occurred because of lightning strikes, tree falls, and electrocutions. There were 25 deaths reported in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh witnessed 21 deaths, and Gujarat reported 10 deaths. Maharashtra too saw the death of 3 people.
In Madhya Pradesh, Punjab etc, the heavy rains and winds have affected the agriculture in the region
These storms were caused by strong Western winds, that absorbed moisture from the Arabian Sea and clashed with the Eastern monsoon winds, coming in from the Bay of Bengal. The contact between these two winds caused a disturbance, which resulted in the thunderstorms.
B P Yadav, the head of the Indian Meteorological Dept, said that these were the worst storms, and now they are over. The weather will now start getting drier in most parts of the country except East India.
These storms have also started a political tiff.
PM Modi tweeted his grief over the loss of lives in Gujarat. The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Kamal Nath tweeted back and said that the PM was concerned only of his home state, Gujarat.
The Prime Minister Office then, in a later tweet said that PM Modi has expressed grief over the loss of lives due to the surprise storms in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Manipur, and other parts of the country.
The PMO also announced an es gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the families of those who lost their lives across the country due to these storms. This amount would be drawn from the PM’s National Relief Fund. they also approved an amount of Rs 50,000 for each injured person.
The State governments too have separately announced compensations.
The governments of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh said that they would give Rs. 4 lakh each for the families of those who lost their lives, while the Gujarat government announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakhs.
The worst affected regions in Rajasthan were Jalore, Jaisalmer, Barmer, Jodhpur, Pali, Kota etc.
The number of people affected in rain related mishaps since Tuesday, has gone up to 25.
