More than 100 persons were killed in a severe dust storm followed by heavy thundershowers in the early hours of Thursday in several parts of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
According to preliminary reports, the devastating squall claimed 36 lives in Agra alone, while Bijnor and Saharanpur registered three and two deaths respectively, and one each in Bareilly, Moradabad, Chitrakoot and Rampur.
In Rajasthan, 11 persons died in Bharatpur district, four in Alwar and five in Dholpur including one each in Jhunjhunu and Bikaner, Hemant Kumar Gera, the Disaster Management and Relief Secretary of Rajasthan told PTI. Alwar was most affected by the squall with the whole district plunging into darkness due to the snapping of power supply. Trees were uprooted in several places.
Chief minister of Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje and the CM of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, announced compensation for the family members of the dead and the injured.