Homeless man dies of cold, toll reaches six

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, December 12

Cold wave claimed the life of another homeless person, taking the toll of people losing their life this season to six.

As per information received from local NGO Sahara Welfare Society, its volunteers got to know that a homeless person had been lying unconscious in the railway station waiting area.

When they reached the place, they observed that the person had died, possibly due to cold.

Police officials reached the spot. NGO volunteers took the body to the Civil Hospital for post-mortem.

As per the data released by the Agri-Met Department of the PAU’s regional centre in Bathinda, the minimum temperature was recorded at 11 degree Celsius and the maximum temperature at 14.5 degree Celsius today.

The city witnessed 2 mm rainfall and the sun refused to shine throughout the day.

Cold winds blew at a speed of 2.6 kmph, affecting the commuters traveling on two-wheelers in the region.

As per the forecast released by the Indian Meteorological Department, they have predicted moderate to dense fog at a few places and very dense fog at isolated places across the state in the next 48 to 72 hours.

Homeless persons, including children and elderly, continue to shiver in the biting cold as the district administration has created shelter homes but it has not taken any initiative to shift them there.

Mayor Balwant Rai Nath said the MCB had made two night shelters, which had enough space to accommodate homeless persons.

However, it is seen that they don’t sleep in the night shelters as they feel they would not be able to get clothes and quilts from people, he added.