Over 100 Die In Indian Cold Snap...01/12/00
 
PATNA, India, Reuters — A cold spell in north and east India has killed dozens, possibly hundreds of people and disrupted roads and railways, officials and media said on Sunday. The Press Trust of India said temperatures had dived to near freezing in some parts and that 113 people had died from the cold in northern Uttar Pradesh and eastern Bihar states.

IN THESE STATES, summer day-time temperatures can climb well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) and homes, often flimsy without any heating, are not equipped for such a severe winter.
 
The Press Trust of India said Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, reported 68 deaths while impoverished Bihar accounted for 45. But the United News of India said about 200 people had died of the cold in the past week in Bihar alone.
 
PTI said the biting cold and dense fog had disrupted rail and road traffic in the two states. Several flights have been delayed in the region due to the bad weather. It said the mercury hovered around 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) in parts of Uttar Pradesh, including the state capital Lucknow.
 
Bihar’s relief commissioner, Grish Shankar, told Reuters in the state’s capital, Patna, that the government  had no statistics of people dying of cold.
 
In central Bihar, the temperature hit an all-time low of 34.7 Fahrenheit (1.5 degrees Celsius) on Saturday and has hovered around 43.7 Fahrenheit (6.5 degrees Celsius) in other parts of the state.
 

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