Even Monkeys Desperately Trying To Cool Down As India Battles Against Severe Heat, Claims More Than 2000 Lives

When India is struggling with severe heat, monkeys are becoming desparate to cool down by jumping in the lakes, ponds and swimming pools. 

More than 2000 people have died in the midst of a blistering heat wave in India which has seen temperatures hit 50 degrees celsius as roads have melted in the capital New Delhi, Telangana capital Hyderabad and Rajasthan capital Jaipur.

Holidays and leaves has been cancelled for all doctors as deaths from heatstroke have soared, and there has also been a spike diarrhea cases due to people swimming in dirty water to cool off.

At a temple in Jaipur, macaque monkeys have been pictured swimming in a sacred pool to cool down - and have even been accepting water from tourists.

As temperatures were forecast to hit 43C (109F) in Jaipur, a troop of macaques were pictured diving into the pools in the Galtaji Temple in an attempt to stay cool.

Forecasters have warned that there will be no respite from the savage heat until Thursday at least, when a dust and thunderstorm has been predicted. 

The heatwave has hit cities in southern India the hardest, such as Hyderabad, the capital of the state of Andhra Pradesh, where 1551 people have died due to severe heat wave.

Temperatures also hit 45.5C in New Delhi as roads melted, bringing traffic to a standstill.

Meanwhile in Kolkata, in the country's east, taxi drivers refused to drive between 10am and 4pm after two of their colleagues died of suspected heat stroke.  


The streets of Hyderabad, where temperatures have approached 50C, have been all but abandoned after local government put out TV adverts advising people against venturing out.

'The state government has taken up education programmes through television and other media to tell people not to venture into the outside without a cap, to drink water and other measures,' said Tulsi Rani, special commissioner for disaster management in the state.

'We have also requested NGOs and government organisations to open up drinking water camps so that water will be readily available for all the people in the towns.'

In Telangana state, which borders Andhra Pradesh in the south, 1231 people have died in the last week as temperatures hit 48 degrees Celsius over the weekend.

In the western state of Orissa 11 people were confirmed to have died from the heat.


Another 13 people have died in the eastern state of West Bengal, where unions urged drivers in the city of Kolkata to stay off the roads during the day.

Hyderabad street vendor Gangamma said the heat was making her head pound, but she had no choice but to stay outside.

'For the past three days hot wind has been coming in,' said the 65-year-old, who sells cigarettes on a busy intersection. I am a diabetes patient, but I have no husband and no sons, so I have to stay here and keep shop.'

Delhi street food vendor Hari Om said business was slow, with few people venturing out in the furnace-like conditions.

'All the food is getting spoilt even though I prepared it fresh in the morning. It's bad business, but what to do? People are not coming out and they don't feel like eating. All they want is to sip cold water all day.'

Widespread powercuts are expected to follow in the wake of the heatstroke deaths, as power-consuming air conditioning units are turned on en-mass. 

India's power industry has long struggled to meet rapidly rising demand in Asia's third largest economy, with poorly maintained transmission lines and overloaded grids.


INNLIVE warned that some of the hot, dry conditions could plunge the worst-affected states into drought before monsoon rains arrive.

The monsoon is forecast to hit the southern state of Kerala towards the end of this month before sweeping across the country, but it will be weeks before the rains reach the arid northern plains.