Malda: In the Malda district of West Bengal, separate incidents of lightning strikes killed eleven people on Thursday afternoon, PTI reported, citing government officials.
The district administration has announced a compensation of ₹ 2 lakh each for the families of the deceased, he said.
"So far, 11 people have been killed due to lightning strikes. A number of injured people are being treated at various hospitals. Some of the injured are in critical condition," the official told PTI.
Three persons - Chandan Sahani (40), Raj Mriddha(16) and Manajit Mandal (21) - were killed in Malda's Sahapur area, while another person identified as Asit Saha (19) died in Gajol after he was struck by lightning while working in a mango orchard, he said.
Eight-year-old Rana Sheikh in Manickchak's Mohammed Tola and a couple, Nayan Roy (23) and Priyanka Singha (20) of Harishchandrapur, also lost their lives due to lightning, the official added.
In Haddatola, lightning killed Atul Mandal (65) and Sheikh Sabrul (11), while Sumitra Mandal (45) lost her life in Mirdadpur, he said.
In Englishbazar's Milki, a man identified as Pankaj Mandal (23) was killed.
In the tragic incident of a massive hoarding collapsed in Ghatkopar in Mumbai days ago, claiming 14 lives and injuring around 75 people, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has taken swift action to address the issue of oversized hoardings.
In response to the accident, the BMC has issued a notice to the Central and Western Railways administration, directing the immediate removal of irregularly shaped hoardings, especially those larger than 40x40 feet, from the railway administration's boundaries.