In pics: Extreme heat bakes northern and western India
The number of states gripped by the heatwaves has gone up from three to nine in the past three days since Monday.
Vast swathes of northern and western India are reeling under near heatwave conditions with experts expressing concerns over the sweltering temperatures that have shot past 40 degree Celsius in the first few weeks of summer.
The number of states gripped by the heatwaves has gone up from three to nine in the past three days since Monday.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), regions of the states suffering the heatwaves include Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
Maximum temperatures hovered around five degree Celsius above normal in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra and even in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh.
Large parts of Odisha, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh are also witnessing daily temperatures of more than 40 degree Celsius. In Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, temperatures are forecast to touch 47 degree Celsius in the next few weeks.
Scattered rain by the end of the week is expected to bring some relief to Delhi and neighbouring areas where temperatures have almost touched 40 degree Celsius.
But in other places, officials warned no respite was in the offing, raising concerns about the high temperatures even in March and in hill stations such as Srinagar and Dehradun.
The high temperatures also renew fears of another drought that is likely to sap rural demand, gut agriculture and pose a challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plan to double farm income by 2022.
It was a hot day in Delhi on Thursday with the mercury settling six notches above normal at 38.2 degrees Celsius. Temperature in Dehradun as well as Srinagar was recorded much above normal for this part of the year.
The change in winds, clear sky conditions over the northwest and adjoining central India and approaching western disturbance with only mallow effects over the Himalayan regions are being attributed to the sizzling effect in the rest of the India.
Heatwave occurs when the maximum temperature reaches above 40 degrees Celsius and at least 5 degrees above the season’s average and stays like that for five days.
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