 "Delhi experiences hottest day in season, seethes at 44.1 degree celcius")
The mercury soared in several parts of the country on Sunday with the national capital witnessing its hottest day of the season at 44.1 degrees Celsius.
The temperature in Delhi was five notches above normal while the minimum was recorded at 25.3 degrees Celsius.
The denizens of the national capital are in for a sweltering day on Monday as well with the weatherman forecasting that the maximum temperature may go up to 44 degrees Celsius.
Punjab and Haryana, meanwhile, are experiencing a severe heatwave condition. The maximum temperatures hovered between four and six notches above normal in most parts of the two states, the MeT office said.
Hisar in Haryana registered the highest temperature of 45.4 degrees Celsius in the region, five notches above normal.
Patiala sizzled at 43.6 degrees Celsius, six notches above normal, while the maximum temperature at Ludhiana was 43.5 degrees Celsius, five notches above normal.
More From This Section
The scorching conditions are likely to continue over the next 48 hours.
In Uttar Pradesh, the weather remained dry with the mercury breaching the 40-degree mark at several places.
Allahabad recorded a high of 45.7 degrees Celsius, while it was 45.4 in Jhansi. Orai, too, witnessed scorching heat as the mercury there touched a high of 45.5 degrees Celsius, while Hamirpur witnessed 44.6 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperatures in Agra and Aligarh were 44.4 and 43.4 degrees Celsius respectively.
Day temperatures were above normal in Rajasthan. The highest maximum temperature recorded over the plains was 46.1 degrees Celsius at Churu in western Rajasthan.
Nor'westers brought some respite from the scorching heat to Odisha, as temperatures dipped in several places.
The maximum temperature in Bhubaneswar was 40.6 degrees Celsius, while in neighbouring Cuttack it was 38.5, the MeT office said.
Despite a drop in temperature in many areas, including the western region, the mercury crossed 40 in at least eight places.
Angul town was the hottest place in the state, recording 42.1 degrees Celsius.
Sunstroke has claimed at least three lives in the state this summer so far with casualties reported from Bargarh, Angul and Balangir districts.
Bihar today witnessed a hot and dry day with Gaya recorded as the the hottest place at 43.1 degrees Celsius, three degrees above normal. The Met department said Gaya's maximum may cross 44 degrees Celsius tomorrow. State capital Patna registered 37.4 degrees.
In Telangana, Adilabad sizzled at 46 degrees Celsius even as several other places in the state received light to moderate rains in the last 24 hours.
Burgampadu and Bhadrachalam (both in Khammam district) received four cms of rainfall, followed by Vikarabad (2 cms) in Ranga Reddy district in the last 24 hours, it said. A few other places got one cm of rainfall.
Heatwave conditions prevailed at isolated places in Vidarbha while day temperatures were markedly above normal in some parts of Saurashtra and Kutch.