kolkata as the first dark clouds started showing up in the blazing kolkata sky around midafternoon the parched city thought its prayers were answered but it was too little too late the number of heat stroke deaths in the state climbed to 100 seventeen deaths were reported on wednesday two of them in kolkata and all that the city got were a few scattered raindrops not even a drizzle fiftyyearold tea seller md taufiq collapsed at his stall on karaya road in the afternoon he was taken to hospital bur died a 22yearold applicant for a police job collapsed and died after a 16km test run as the city sizzled at 40plus temperatures for the third day kolkatans flocked to malls to simply hang around in the airconditioned comfort sumitra balmiki who works as a maid was cooling off at south city with her two nephews itna garmi hai ki yahan chale aye its so hot that we came here said the lake gardens slum dweller we cannot buy anything here we have just come for the ac we thought we would die at home said one of the boys driver mukul adhikari said memsaab and the children have gone shopping i cannot sit in the underground parking lot its steaming hot there so i am moving about in the mall nonac markets were a picture in contrast new market was deserted shopkeepers said that business has been dull for the past week people are coming only after 5 pm though we open shop at 11am said suresh chandarama said just then a woman started bleeding from the nose and fainted she was taken to a hospital even the hawkers at the grand hotel arcade were quiet on other days they scream their lungs out to outshout each other its terrible said one of them hospitals recorded a surge in admissions on wednesday a majority of them being heat stroke patients suresh bhujel and abhishek pal were rushed to sskm hospital after having a seizure and collapsing on the race course during a police training run pal died and bhujel a darjeeling resident is still in hospital sskm alone received 1415 cases while entering writers buildings chief minister mamata banerjee asked policemen on duty to stand in the shade district administration officials have been asked to distribute ors among employees and police personnel the districts are having the worst of it the stench of rotting flesh drew people to the body of sukumar karmakar a retired teacher who had died in his house three days ago seven people died in west midnapore four in asansol two in hooghly and one each in bankura and purulia on wednesday at bankuras khatra niharika singha a 75 year old widow collapsed and died on the road while returning with her pension south city mani square forum the air conditioned portions of city centre salt lake and city centre new town registered turnouts that are by normal standards unusual on a weekday afternoon multiplexes