46-year-old man killed in lightning strike at Kangra’s Shahpur village

A 46-year-old man lost his life after he was struck by lightning while working in his fields at Dhadhamb village of the Shahpur area in Kangra district on Sunday morning.

The tragic incident occurred amid continued spells of intermittent rain and thunderstorms lashing the region over the past four days. The deceased has been identified as Vijay Kumar, son of Raj Singh, a resident of Dhadhamb village.

As per initial reports, Vijay had gone to fields in the morning along with two of his friends. While they were working, a sudden bolt of lightning struck close to Vijay directly. His friends, who were a short distance away at the time, witnessed the horrifying incident. Although visibly shaken, they managed to summon courage to rush Vijay to the Shahpur government hospital. However, doctors at the hospital declared him brought dead.

The local authorities were immediately informed. A team from the Shahpur police station reached hospital and took body into custody. After completing the necessary legal formalities, the body was shifted to the district hospital, where a post-mortem examination would be conducted on Monday.

Meanwhile, the police initiated inquest proceedings under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the incident, said Kartar Singh, SHO, Shahpur police station.

On the other hand, the district administration asked residents to take precautions during thunderstorm, especially while working in open fields or travelling on roads.