Kolkata:
Twelve people were killed and six others were seriously injured after being struck by lightning in West Bengal's Burdwan and Malda districts on Sunday. Police say, while ten people were killed and six were injured in Burdwan, two died in Malda.
In Burdwan, the deceased include one 15-year-old boy, a septuagenarian, a 22-year-old youth and seven people aged between 35 and 43, said police. Six injured people have been admitted to hospital. Burdwan District Magistrate O S Meena announced Rs two lakh ex-gratia each for the families of the victims.
At Habibpur area in Malda district, a 60-year-old woman and her 10-year-old grand daughter were killed when lightning struck them while they were enjoying the rain outside their house.