Overview

• Thirty-nine students fainted at Kolkata’s Red Road parade on Aug. 15 from dehydration and heat exposure, with all but one discharged from SSKM Hospital.
• Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited SSKM Hospital and cited heat, post-rain humidity and a psychological contagion effect as causes of the mass fainting.
• Students and police personnel also collapsed during Independence Day events in Assam’s Baksa and Abhayapuri districts and were treated in crowded local hospitals facing bed shortages.
• Kolkata Police Chief Manoj Verma and state cultural affairs officials arranged transport for the recovered students back to their homes.
• Officials are reviewing hospital capacity and safety protocols for large outdoor school contingents under extreme weather conditions.