Man killed in fight over water as India grapples with heatwave

Police say 33 year old died after confronting group as they drew large amounts of water from public tap

A man searching for drinking water walks on a dried-up portion of Asia's biggest lake, Upper Lake, after it shrunk during a heatwave in India. (Sanjeev Gupta/EPA)

A man has died during a fight over water in southern India as the country continues to be gripped by a 50C heatwave.

The 33 year old was allegedly beaten to death after confronting a man and his sons as they were reportedly drawing large amounts of water from a public tap in the city of Thanjavur, in Tamil Nadu, police said on Friday.

Police named the victim as D Anand Babu, from the village of Vilar, near Thanjavur, The Times of India reports.

According to police, a 48-year-old man and his three sons were filling plastic barrels with water from a tap connected to a nearby tank on Wednesday when Mr Babu spotted them.

The victim is said to have got into an altercation with the group after asking whether they should be collecting such a high volume given the lack of water in the area.

He was taken to hospital but died the following day, The Times of India reported.

His father is also believed to have been injured during the incident.

The Times of India reports that one person has been arrested and police are still investigating, while English-language news channel Mirror Now said four people had been detained.

Scorching temperatures and water shortages have caused “heavy casualties, including dozens of deaths by sunstroke and other heat-related causes”, according to The Weather Channel.

Indian media said last Friday that 17 people had died in three weeks.

Monsoons bringing down the heat are expected to begin on the southern coast later this week.