Respite after Indian heatwave kills 1,400

MONSOON rains finally hit the southern coast of India yesterday, bringing respite from a scorching heatwave that killed at least 1,438 people in the past three weeks.

No new deaths were reported yesterday in the worst-affected southern state of Andhra Pradesh, which alone accounted for 1,317 deaths, said State Relief Commissioner DC Roshaiah.

Other deaths have been reported in the northern and eastern parts of the country, including an Australian woman who died on Saturday of heat stroke while travelling on a crowded train in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, Press Trust of India news agency said.

Jane Kelly, from Sydney, was travelling with a friend to the Hindu holy town of Varanasi when she fell ill and was taken to a hospital in Jhansi where she died.

Meanwhile, thousands of people were recuperating from sunstroke and dehydration in hospitals in Andhra Pradesh, where temperatures dropped from a peak of 49 degrees Celsius.

The monsoon travels north from southern Kerala state and west from north eastern India over a four-month period, but it could be a week before rains reach Andhra Pradesh.