Lightning kills 12 in 24 hours across 10 Bihar districts

PATNA: Altogether 12 people were killed in separate incidents after being struck by lightning in 10 districts of Bihar in the past 24 hours. However, a communique from the Bihar chief minister's office put the death toll at 10.
CM Nitish Kumar Sunday expressed grief over the deaths and asked officials to ensure immediate ex-gratia payment of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased.The CM appealed to people to remain indoors during inclement weather and follow the state disaster management department's protocol.
As per the official figure, there were two deaths in Nalanda and Nawada, followed by one death each in Vaishali, Bhagalpur, Saharsa, Rohtas, Saran, Jamui, Bhojpur, and Gopalganj districts.
Reportedly, two more people were killed due to lightning in Nawada.
In the past five days, separate lightning strikes have killed 25 people across Bihar, officials said.