NEW DELHI, April 28 (Xinhua) -- India Meteorological Department (IMD) Thursday predicted severe heatwave conditions for several parts of the country over the next five days.

The IMD said heatwave conditions will prevail over northwest and central India during the next five days and over east India in the next three days and abate thereafter.

Heatwaves will hit West Rajasthan, Vidarbha (Maharashtra), West Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh, Delhi and East Rajasthan, as well as other states and regions, in the next few days, said the IMD.

According to the IMD, a rise by about 2 degrees Celsius in maximum temperatures is very likely over most parts of Northwest India during the next three days and a fall by about 2 degrees Celsius thereafter.

The advisory came when millions of Indians are experiencing a harsh heatwave that has affected normal life.

During the past 24 hours, heatwave conditions prevailed in isolated pockets over Gangetic West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha, and maximum temperatures on Wednesday were 43-45 degrees Celsius over most parts of the country.

Officials have been worried about more people getting ill from the extreme weather conditions, and experts have suggested people avoid exposure to heat and keep cool, besides avoiding dehydration.

In India, heatwaves are common in May and June. However, this year summer started early with high temperatures from March and heatwaves also began to set in during the month.

In the month of March this year, average maximum temperatures were the highest in 122 years in India.

The heatwave has also triggered an increase in electricity demand, leading to outages in many states amid fears of coal shortages at the country's thermal power plants. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)