Heatstroke claims life of 16-year-old girl from Palghar

The incident occurred when Ravate returned home after her Class 11 exams ended on Monday. She studied at SP Marathe Vidyalaya and Junior College in Manor

PALGHAR: A 16-year-old girl died of a possible heatstroke in Kev village, Palghar, on Monday. Ashwini Vinod Ravate, resident of Vedgepada, was found in a semi-conscious state in an agricultural field and was taken to a private hospital in Manor, where the doctors declared her dead.

Heatstroke claims life of 16-year-old girl from Palghar

The incident occurred when Ravate returned home after her Class 11 exams ended on Monday. She studied at SP Marathe Vidyalaya and Junior College in Manor. Once she reached home, her parents were not home, so she went out to search for them.

In search of her mother, she went to their agricultural field, but her mother had gone to the river to wash clothes, and her father had gone to Manor’s weekly bazaar to buy some household essentials.

After reaching home, Ravate’s mother noticed her college bag, and after not finding her in the house and neighborhood, she went to their field where Ashwini was found in a semi-unconscious condition. She was taken to a private hospital at Manor, about 11 km from the village.

The doctors declared her dead, stating that the deceased showed symptoms of heatstroke. Ashwini fainted and lay unconscious for over two hours in the scorching sun in the field.

High temperatures have been observed in the Palghar district since Monday. India Meteorological Department (IMD)’s automatic weather station at Kosbad Dahanu recorded the highest temperature of 39.3 degrees Celsius on Monday and 37.4 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. The Palghar district administration has, however, not issued any alert about the possible rise in temperature, which is estimated to be 5 degrees Celsius above normal temperature for the month.

Civil Surgeon doctor Ramdas Marad said that no heatstroke case was reported neither was Ashwini’s case reported to the Rural Hospital at Manor. Police Inspector Satish Shivkar of the Manor police station also said that no case has been registered regarding the 16-year-old girl’s death.