North India reeled under severe heat wave conditions on Thursday, with Jaipur experiencing the hottest day in 33 years at 46.3 degrees Celsius and the national capital recording the season’s highest temperature of 44.7 degrees.
Delhiites had to sweat it out as the maximum temperature was four degrees above normal, and humidity oscillated between 22 and 63 percent.
The previous highest for the season in Delhi was recorded on 29th May when the temperature was 43.7 degrees.
The MeT office said that Thursday’s temperature was the highest for the day in five years.
In the desert state of Rajasthan, relentless heat wave conditions affected normal life, with Bikaner sizzling at 47.4 degrees Celsius. State capital Jaipur was the hottest since 1981, according to the local MeT office.
In Uttar Pradesh too, there was no respite from the scorching heat, with the weatherman forecasting that the dry weather will continue over the state. Allahabad was reeling at 46.1 degrees C.
According to the MeT office in Lucknow, day temperatures shot up in Gorakhpur, Allahabad, Jhansi and Meerut divisions, and changed a little in the remaining divisions of the state.
Hot conditions also swept Faizabad, Lucknow, Allahabad, Bareilly, Moradabad, Jhansi, Agra and Meerut divisions.
Blistering heat wave conditions also prevailed in Punjab and Haryana, with the mercury rising up to several notches above normal in most parts of both the states.
Mercury shot up in both states, touching the 45 degrees Celsius mark in many cities.
Haryana’s Hisar, the hottest place in the region, sizzled at 46 degrees Celsius, the MeT department in Chandigarh said.
Among other places in Haryana, Ambala and Narnaul recorded maximum of 44.4 and 43 degrees Celsius, notches above normal.
In Punjab, Amritsar recorded a maximum of 45.6 degrees, five notches above normal, while Ludhiana and Patiala recorded a high of 45.4 and 44.8 degrees.
The Union Territory of Chandigarh recorded a maximum of 43.8 degrees Celsius, five notches above normal.
According to MeT forecast, weather will remain mainly dry in Punjab and Haryana in the next 24 hours.
In the hilly state of Himachal Pradesh, the lower reaches reeled under scorching heat, with Una sizzling at 44.3 degrees Celsius, five notches above normal.
Sundernagar recorded a maximum temperature of 39.3 degrees Celsius, while Dharamsala recorded a maximum of 33.8 and Shimla 30.9 degrees Celsius.