Heat wave claimed 3,500 lives in 3 years: Govt

Over 3,500 people died due to heat wave in the country in the last three years, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju told the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

Rijiju said 2,040 people died due to heat wave in 2015, as many as 1,114 in 2016 and 384 in 2017.

Of the total casualties due to heat wave, the highest, 2,381 people, died in Andhra Pradesh in the last three years, he said is a written reply.

The Minister of State for Home said in 2018, so far, 22 people have lost their lives due to heat wave.