NEW DELHI - Extreme heat in India has killed at least 77 people over the past 10 days, including dozens of poll workers, as voting wrapped up in the world’s largest general election. At least 33 poll workers died in a single day in India’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, the state’s chief election officer, Navdeep Rinwa, told reporters Sunday. Around 642 million showed up, the most ever to participate, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar told a press conference on Monday. Voters and election workers have endured an extended period of extreme heat since polls opened on April 19, in a mammoth democratic exercise that ended Sunday. But the event has been marred by the deaths of dozens of poll workers and voters.

Source: The Nation June 04, 2024 02:15 UTC