Telangana State Govt issues alert as heat wave continues

Hyderabad: Heatwaves in Telangana State has prompted the State government to issue alerts in all districts to take precautionary measures to minimise the impact of the prevailing weather conditions.

The maximum temperature is likely to hover above 40 degrees Celsius in the next 24 hours in many parts of the state, an official said on Wednesday. "We have issued heatwave alerts to all district Collectors and officials concerned.

People are advised not to venture out during afternoon when the temperature is at peak," Principal Secretary (Revenue) B R Meena said. "We have also asked the rural water department to be ready with sufficient water storage facilities. The toll so far reported is 35," he said.

In an earlier release issued over a week ago, the State government had said as many as 66 lives were lost to heat waves in the state. However, Meena denied the figure. A directive has been issued to all departments concerned saying construction labourers and other related workers are not engaged in work during the peak heat phase, he said.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted that heatwave conditions are likely to prevail at isolated places in the state tomorrow. The highest maximum temperature of 44 degrees Celsius was recorded at Nalgonda and Ramagundam in the State on Tuesday.