Even the monkeys are desperately trying to cool down as India battles against the heat and scorching 50C temperatures leave more than 800 people dead
By Chris Pleasance Published: 10:11 EST, 26 May 2015 | Updated: 03:00 EST, 27 May 2015 More than 800 people have died in the midst of a blistering heatwave in India which has seen temperatures hit 50C as roads have melted in the capital New Delhi.
Holiday leave has been cancelled for all doctors as deaths from heatstroke have soared, and there has also been a spike diarrhea cases due to people swimming in dirty water to cool off.
At a temple in Jaipur, macaque monkeys have been pictured swimming in a sacred pool to cool down - and have even been accepting water from tourists.
 A troop of macaque monkeys which live inside the Galtaji Temple in Jaipur, northern India, have been accepting water from tourists as they try to cool down in the midst of a heatwave which has seen thermometers hit 50C  The macaques have also been pictured taking a dip in the Hindu temple's holy pools in an attempt to stay cool in blistering temperatures  The monkeys are pictured drinking from one of the pools inside the Galtaji Temple as temperature hit 43C in Jaipur today  Forecasters have warned that high temperatures will continue until Thursday at least, when a rain and dust storm has been predicted  A macaque monkey cools off in the waters of the Galtaji Temple, Jaipur, which are used as a pilgrimage for hundreds of Hindus each year As temperatures were forecast to hit 43C (109F) in Jaipur today, a troop of macaques were pictured diving into the pools in the Galtaji Temple in an attempt to stay cool. Forecasters have warned that there will be no respite from the savage heat until Thursday at least, when a dust and thunderstorm has been predicted. The heatwave has hit cities in southern India the hardest, such as Hyderabad, the capital of the state of Andhra Pradesh, where 551 people have died in the last seven days.Temperatures also hit 45.5C in New Delhi as roads melted, bringing traffic to a standstill.
Meanwhile in Kolkata, in the country's east, taxi drivers refused to drive between 10am and 4pm after two of their colleagues died of suspected heat stroke.
The streets of Hyderabad, where temperatures have approached 50C, have been all but abandoned after local government put out TV adverts advising people against venturing out.  A group of men try and beat the heat by taking a dip in the Yamuna River near Wazirabad as Delhi experienced yet another scorching day  These men play to the cameras in the Yamuna River. Nearby Delhi continued to sizzle in 45.5C temperatures today as roads melted  Children enjoy the brief respite from the heat provided by a pond at India Gate, the famous war memorial in New Delhi  Revellers enjoy a water park Delhi Rides at Kalindi Kunj in the capital. The heat has made life tough for Delhiites in a sprawling city of more than 20million people  Women and girls shield themselves from the heat in Delhi, which is battling temperatures so hot traffic has been brought to a standstill by melting roads   A fruit seller sleeping in the shade beside his stall in Delhi (left) while a family enjoys a trip to the Delhi Rides splash park in the Indian capital (right)  Across the rest of India 800 people have died, mainly from heatstroke, as medics have been recalled from holiday to help treat the sick (pictured, a man cools off under a tap in Amritsar, northern Indian)  In New Delhi (pictured) roads have begun melting in the savage heat, which is due to last until Thursday at least, forecasters say  Doctors have also warned of a spike in the number of diarrhea cases as children bathe in dirty water (pictured, a boy jumps into a pond to cool off in New Delhi today)  Street vendors across India have said the weather has hurt business as people stay indoors (pictured, a worker cools off in New Delhi)  Rickshaw drivers have been particularly badly affected by the heatwave, as taxi drivers in Kolkata have refused to work between 10am and 4pm after two of their colleagues died from suspected heatstroke 'The state government has taken up education programmes through television and other media to tell people not to venture into the outside without a cap, to drink water and other measures,' said P. Tulsi Rani, special commissioner for disaster management in the state. 'We have also requested NGOs and government organisations to open up drinking water camps so that water will be readily available for all the people in the towns.' In Telangana state, which borders Andhra Pradesh in the south, 231 people have died in the last week as temperatures hit 48 degrees Celsius over the weekend. In the western state of Orissa 11 people were confirmed to have died from the heat. Another 13 people have died in the eastern state of West Bengal, where unions urged drivers in the city of Kolkata to stay off the roads during the day.   A man hides his face from the sun in the southern city of Hyderabad (left), which has been hit with temperatures of 50C, while a motorcyclist adopts similar tactics in the northern city of Amritsar (right)  Most of the deaths have occurred among labourers and construction workers who are badly affected by the heat, (pictured, workers sit in the shade in New Delhi during the heatwave)  Also badly affected are the young and very old, especially in poor districts where they are unable to cool their homes (pictured, and old lady cools herself using a fan as a young girl plays outside her home in Kolkata)  An estimated 551 deaths have occurred in Hyderabad (pictured), as southern India bears the brunt of the current high temperatures Hyderabad street vendor P. Gangamma said the heat was making her head pound, but she had no choice but to stay outside. 'For the past three days hot wind has been coming in,' said the 65-year-old, who sells cigarettes on a busy intersection. I am a diabetes patient, but I have no husband and no sons, so I have to stay here and keep shop.' Delhi street food vendor Hari Om said business was slow, with few people venturing out in the furnace-like conditions. 'All the food is getting spoilt even though I prepared it fresh in the morning. It's bad business, but what to do? People are not coming out and they don't feel like eating. All they want is to sip cold water all day.' Widespread powercuts are expected to follow in the wake of the heatstroke deaths, as power-consuming air conditioning units are turned on en-mass.
India's power industry has long struggled to meet rapidly rising demand in Asia's third largest economy, with poorly maintained transmission lines and overloaded grids. The Hindustan Times warned that some of the hot, dry conditions could plunge the worst-affected states into drought before monsoon rains arrive. The monsoon is forecast to hit the southern state of Kerala towards the end of this month before sweeping across the country, but it will be weeks before the rains reach the arid northern plains.  Following the deaths, officials now expect rolling blackouts as the country's power grid fails to keep with the demand from power-hungry air conditioning units (pictured, a woman hides from the sun in Hyderabad)
 Two women try to keep cool along with a young boy as they walk through the streets of Hyderabad in southern India today | ||
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