Cold wave claims 7 more lives in Nepal; toll reaches 24

Intense cold weather in Nepal has claimed seven more lives, taking to 24 the death toll due to severe winter conditions over the past week in southern part of the country, according to a media report.
More than half of the them, 14, were reported from Saptari district while five each in Rautahat and Siraha districts in the Tarai region, it said.
Seven people, including a 7-month-old child, lost their lives due to excessive cold in various municipalities of Saptari district last night, the Himalayan Times quoted senior police officials as saying.
The locals of Saptari have sent a memorandum to Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, demanding relief materials for those vulnerable to cold.

In Rautahat, two people died due to freezing cold last night, Superintendent of Police Yagya Binod Pokhrel said.
Rautahat District Administration Office said warm clothes and blankets were being distributed to the poor and in Dalit settlements of the district.
In Siraha, a five-year-old child died due to excessive cold, taking the number of deaths due to cold wave in the district to five, according to the report.