A lightning strike killed almost 11 people and left others wounded in Jaipur in Northern India yesterday.
The individuals met the fatal incident while taking selfies in the rain on top of a watchtower at the city’s 12th Century Amer Fort.
Around 27 people were on the popular tourist attraction site when the event occurred.
Several of them allegedly jumped to the ground.
According to a senior police officer, the tower was a popular spot in the fort and most of the people who perished were young.
Meanwhile, the state’s chief minister, Ashok Gehlot, has announced 500,000 rupees ($6,700; £4,800) as compensation for the bereaved families.
Lightning strikes are a major disaster in India as it kills around 2,000 Indians on average annually.
According to local media reports, Sunday alone saw nine more deaths from lightning strikes reported across Rajasthan, the state where Jaipur is found.
India’s monsoon season, which sees heavy rains, typically lasts from June to September.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has remarked that lightning strikes deaths have increased in the country since the 1960s.
The department pointed out climate crisis as one of the reasons.
According to the data, lightning occurrences too have increased by 30%-40% since the early to mid-1990s.
In the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh in 2018 recorded 36,749 lightning strikes in only 13 hours.
Administrators have pointed out that the incidents are mostly experienced in areas with thinner tree cover.
By Everlyne Bosibori
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