New Delhi: Amid a blistering heatwave sweeping large parts of India, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for Delhi-NCR and the plains of northwest India.
A heatwave warning has been announced for Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, UP, and Odisha as parts of these states record temperatures above 45 degrees Celsius. The severe conditions are likely to persist till the first week of May after which chances of rain increase, IMD scientist RK Jenamani was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
"Rise by about 2 degrees Celsius in maximum temperatures very likely over most parts of Northwest India during next three days and fall by about 2 degrees Celsius thereafter," it said.
The mercury maintained an upward trend in central India with temperatures in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh crossing 45 degrees Celcius.
Delhi witnessed yet another warm morning today as the weather office predicted a heatwave in the region during the day with the maximum temperature likely to touch 43 degrees Celsius.
Rajasthan has scheduled four hours of power cuts for factories, making it at least the third state after Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh to disrupt industrial activity to manage surging power demand amid an intense heatwave. The state also imposed four-hour power cuts for rural regions, exposing thousands of families in the desert state to extreme temperatures, with peak summer heat still to come before cooling monsoon rains arrive in June.
In the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the winter capital Jammu recorded its hottest day of the season with the mercury touching 40 degrees Celsius. The soaring temperature has led to power cuts and water crises in different parts of the Union Territory.
Odisha sweltered in the blazing sun for the third successive day on Wednesday as the maximum temperature breached the 40 degrees Celsius mark in 24 places, the Met office said. All schools in the state have been shut till April 30 due to heatwave.
Neighbouring West Bengal has announced early summer holidays for educational institutions due to severe heat. Schools and colleges in the state have been ordered to shut by May 2 due to heat, according to reports.