The death toll from heatstroke in Delhi has been revised to two as the national capital grapples with an intense heatwave. The Delhi government's Health Department issued a directive ensuring emergency services in hospitals operate around the clock, with senior doctors always present to manage heatstroke patients.
Delhi Health Minister Chairs An Emergency Meeting
Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj held an emergency meeting today with the heads of hospitals and issued directions to scale up beds for patients with heat-related illnesses.
"Chaired an emergency meeting with heads of all major hospitals regarding Heat stroke patients. Delhi Police beat officers/ patrolling teams will be requested help in shifting homeless to shelter homes in case they are lying under open sky. Department is sending communication to Delhi Police Commissioner to ask their patrolling teams to call Ambulances in case their teams spot destitute is running high fever or sick," Bharadwaj said in a post on X.
"Hospitals to scale up the beds for patients of heat-related illnesses. Circular issued to Hospitals & CATS Ambulance service. Fresh advisory to be advertised in Radio and Newspapers," he added.
Delhi Health Dept Orders 24/7 Emergency Services
The Health Department of the national capital in an official directive said the importance of early management of heat-affected patients was informed to all the hospitals in the meeting.
Heatstroke Death Toll Revised To 2
An official from Safdarjung Hospital clarified, "Out of five deaths, two are confirmed as per NCDC guidelines. The rest could alternate diagnoses, so we are revising the death census to 2".
Earlier, a senior medical officer at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital reported five deaths and about a dozen critical cases suspected to be due to heatstroke. Dr Ajay Shukla, medical superintendent at RML Hospital, states that 22 patients, mostly labourers, had been hospitalised with suspected heatstroke over the past two days.
Dr Shulha said that the delay in reaching the hospital has been a major factor in patient vulnerability. "Most patients lose their lives because it is too late to start cooling them down. The mortality rate is very high, around 60-70 per cent. Delays can cause a lot of deaths," he told ANI.
Since the onset of the heatwave, RML hospital treated around 45-50 patients affected by the heat, with around seven fatalities reported, Dr Shukla added.
Media reports also indicated that 10 people in Noida succumbed to heatstroke within the past 24 hours.
Delhi has been experiencing record-high temperatures and a water crisis, severely impacting the labouring population. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert for the national capital, advising residents to avoid prolonged outdoor exposure.
The relentless heatwave, combined with water shortages and high power consumption, has multiplied the difficulties of Delhiites.