Six more human lives were lost to lightning strikes on Wednesday, taking the toll to 22 in the last four days in different districts of Odisha.
Besides, five more persons sustained severe burn injuries as they were exposed to the outdoors during the lightning strike.
All the ill-fated victims were farmers, who died after lightning struck them at croplands. The fatalities were reported on Wednesday afternoon hours in Kendrapara district, Balasore, Bhadrak and Dhenkanal districts, official sources said.
Those dying of lightning strikes in the current week are mostly from rural areas with a majority of being farmers engaged in agriculture operations.
The bereaved family members of the deceased persons will be extended Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia aid each from Special Relief Commission’s gratuitous relief fund as lightning has been conferred as State-specific disaster. Besides, the injured persons will be provided with free treatment and monetary aid as per the disaster code, said an official of the State revenue and disaster control department.
It’s pertinent to note here that the State accounts for around 300 lightning-induced fatalities on average every year. Meanwhile, the state government has initiated plantation of palm trees on a massive scale as these trees, according to experts, act as some sort of lightning arrester.