Heatwave in Odisha's coolest place

The intense heatwave sweeping across Odisha has not spared even the mountainous Koraput district, known as one of the coolest places in the state.
The predominantly tribal district, a summer retreat with scenic beauty, has virtually turned into a hot cauldron during the past few days. Jeypore, the business hub of the district, recorded 35.6 degree celsius yesterday.
While roads in urban areas like Jeypore, Koraput, Kotpad and Sunabeda wore a deserted look during the day with most people choosing to stay indoors, high humidity level and a strong hot breeze swept the interior areas like Laxmipur, Pottangi, Semiliguda and Nandapur.

Officials said scores of patients, suffering from dehydration, had been admitted to various hospitals in past one week.
Tribal villages of Semiliguda, Borigumma, Narayanpatna and Pottangi are facing acute shortage of drinking water as most of water bodies have dried up and water levels in wells and tubewells fallen below 200 feet, 60 feet lower than normal, they said.
Chief district medical officer (Koraput) Laxmidhar Kabi said, "Special instructions have been issued to all health centres of the district to open special wards for sunstroke patients. Adequate medicines and ice bags have also been kept in all the hospitals."
No sunstroke death has been reported in the district so far, he added.

Executive engineer, rural water supply and sanitation, Koraput, Monaranjan Mali said, "Field staff have been asked to repair defunct water projects and tubewells in the district at the earliest.