Nearly 100 people have died across India and Nepal in the past three days as violent thunderstorms, lightning strikes and torrential rain battered the region, triggering chaos and widespread damage, officials and local media reported Friday.
In India’s eastern state of Bihar alone, at least 64 people have died since Wednesday in weather-related incidents including lightning, wall collapses, and falling trees, according to the state disaster management department.
Former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, however, claimed the toll is much higher.
“I am deeply saddened by the tragic deaths of more than 50 people... from storm, rain, lightning, tree and wall collapse in Bihar,” Yadav posted on X, offering condolences to the victims' families.
The devastation stretched into Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, where more than 22 people died, the Hindustan Times reported.
Lightning also claimed lives in Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand, as heavy downpours crippled infrastructure and communications.
Across the border in Nepal, at least eight people were killed, including a 9-month-old baby struck by lightning while at home in Bajura district, Rising Nepal reported.
The child’s mother was injured.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued a multihazard alert on Wednesday, warning of extreme heat in the west and severe thunderstorms in the east and central belts.
The agency now forecasts continued heavy rain, lightning, and gusty winds through Saturday across central and eastern India.
While the monsoon season typically begins in June, this bout of unseasonal weather comes after a string of deadly heatwaves and underscores the region’s growing climate unpredictability.
The IMD has already warned that April temperatures are likely to soar above normal in much of India.
