India and its lightning strikes

The southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh recorded 36,749 lightning strikes in just a 13-hour period on Tuesday

It is sad that at least 2,000 people have lost their lives in lightning strikes in India every year since 2005.  Apparently, this is an unusually high number.

Lightning strikes are common in India during heavy monsoon rains.  The season typically begins in June and lasts until September.

However, for some strange reasons, the Andhra Pradesh region usually sees increased lightning activity even before the monsoon begins.  This was according to Kishan Sanku, who runs the state emergency operation centre.

Tuesday's bout of lightning is being considered particularly unusual because data from last year shows that there were some 30,000 lighting strikes throughout the entire month of May in the same region.

Mr Sanku added that this year, cold winds from the Arabian sea collided with warmer winds from northern India and produced conditions that led to the formation of more clouds than usual.