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bhubaneswar : Orissa Govt on Monday declared an early summer vacation for schools due to an unprecedented heat wave that grips state for last couple of weeks.

All government and private schools in Orissa will remain closed for summer vacation from Tuesday.

Taking stoke of the heatwave situation in the State on his return from New Delhi on Monday afternoon, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has also aksed officials to repair defunct tube wells in both rural and urban areas on priority basis to avoid drinking water crisis.

It has also been decided to pay ex-gratia of Rs 10,000 each from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to the next of the kin of those who had died due to sunstroke.

"Usually the summer vacation starts from May every year but we have asked the school authorities to declare it early this year because temperature has crossed 40 degrees Celsius in many parts of the state," revenue department official said. The mercury has crossed over 40 degrees Celsius in many places including Jharsuguda, Sundergarh, Sambalpur, Talcher and Titilagarh town in the past one week.

On Monday, maximum temperature recorded at Bhubaneswar and Cuttack was 39.1 and 40.1 degrees Celsius respectively. The Jharsuguda, Sambalpur , Hirakud , Keonjhar and Chandbali towns saw the mercury crossing 41-degree mark.

According to local media reports, at least 22 people have died of sunstroke since March.

However, an official of the state revenue control room has only confirmed four deaths.

According to the Met departmet sources the current spell of heatwave was likely to prevail for a few more days, as wind patterns from the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea are such that there is little chance of any rain.

The missing sea breeze too is adding to the heat wave, the source further added.