New Delhi: At least eight people were killed in lightning strikes and crops damaged in several areas of Gujarat on Sunday, the officials said. The state received widespread unseasonal rains accompanied by thunderstorms throughout the day.
220 of 251 talukas of Gujarat received up to 50 mm of rainfall in 10 hours since 6 am on Sunday, according to State Emergency Operation Centre data.
A 22-year-old biker died in Botad taluka after being struck by lightning, while a 29-year-old man died after a tree fell on an autorickshaw in Mehsana district, the police said.
Two farmers died in the Tapi district, and one each in Sabarkantha, Ahmedabad, Mehsana, and Dahod districts in lightning strikes that accompanied the rains, reported PTI.
Ahmedabad city received 15 mm of rainfall in two hours in the morning, however, the city received more showers in the evening. Meanwhile, locals in Rajkot were seen rejoicing as rains and hailstorms hit the city.
According to PTI, the rains also affected the ceramic industry of Morbi district in Saurashtra region as factories were forced to remain shut, officials said.
Lightning strikes killed cattle and sheep in some places as well, they said.
Manorama Mohanty, the Director of IMD’s meteorological centre in Ahmedabad, said that Valsad, Navsari, Surat, Dang, and Tapi districts in south Gujarat as well as Bhavnagar, Botad and Amreli districts in Saurashtra region were likely to receive heavy rainfall during the day.
“Rainfall is forecast for Sunday only. It will abate by tomorrow and remain concentrated in some parts of south Gujarat and Saurashtra districts,” she told reporters, reported PTI.
According to IMD, the rains were being caused due to a cyclonic circulation lying over the northeast Arabian Sea and adjoining Saurashtra and Kutch regions.