11 people die due to heat stroke after attending Maharashtra Bhushan award ceremony

11 people have died after sitting in the open at the Maharashtra Bhushan award event due to extreme heat, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde stated.

Home Minister Amit Shah presented the award to social activist Dattatreya Narayan and it was instituted by the Maharashtra government. The event was held in Navi Mumbai where the temperature was recorded at a maximum of 38 degree Celsius. Mr Shinde and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis also attended the event. Thousands of followers of the activist attended the event and it started at 11.30 am and went on till 1pm.

The ground was filled with people and had audio and video facilities for viewing the event and seating arrangement was done however there was no shed. Eknath Shinde stated the incident as “unfortunate” and announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the families of those who died.

Mr Shinde stated “as per the briefing received from doctors, 7-8 people have died today while 24 are being treated. This is a case of sunstroke. Some 50 people were admitted to the hospital, of which 24 are still there while the rest have been discharged after primary treatment.” He stated this after visiting the hospital where around 50 people are admitted with heat-related health issues.

Mr Fadnavis tweeted that the government will pay for the treatment of those who suffered heat-related illness. He tweeted in Marathi  “it is very unfortunate and painful that some members participating in the Maharashtra Bhushan award ceremony this morning died due to heatstroke … we share the grief of their families.”