Heat wave grips north, central India

Scorching hot conditions prevailed in several parts of India on Monday, with the maximum temperature crossing 45°C at many places, and the weather expected to get hotter in the next few days.

Scorching hot conditions prevailed in several parts of India on Monday, with the maximum temperature crossing 45°C at many places, and the weather expected to get hotter in the next few days.

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Rajasthan remained under the grip of intense heat, with Churu recording a high of 48.2°C - six degree above normal - on Monday.

In Delhi, the mercury hovered around 45°C - the hottest day of the season so far - while the minimum temperature was 29.3°C, three notches above average for this time of the season, said an official of the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Punjab and Haryana reeled under the effects of the sweltering heat on Monday. While Hisar was the hottest in Haryana at 46°C, Patiala and Amritsar, each recording a maximum temperature of 45.4°C, were the hottest in Punjab.

Madhya Pradesh was sizzling, the hottest being Khajuraho and Nowgaon, each recording a maximum temperature of 46.7°C on Sunday. In Bhopal, the mercury had risen to 44.8°C — the second highest temperature recorded here in a decade.

Temperatures crossed 46°C in western Odisha towns such as Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Balangir and Titlagarh.

“The weather will continue to remain hot and heat wave conditions are likely to prevail for the next few days,” said an IMD official. They may be accompanied by dust storms too in some places.

Experts see early onset of monsoon
New Delhi: The south-west monsoon advanced further on Monday covering the entire Andaman Sea and parts of Bay of Bengal as a section of scientists forecast early onset over Kerala. “The southwest monsoon has further advanced into some parts of southwest Bay of Bengal, some more parts of southeast Bay of Bengal, some parts of east central Bay of Bengal and entire Andaman Sea,” the IMD said.

South-west monsoon had brought its first showers to the Andaman Sea on May 17, three days before the normal onset date. A section of scientists, whose predictions is used by the IMD in its ensemble forecast of monsoon, have said that the latest analysis of weather patterns indicate an early onset of monsoon over Kerala.

“...the latest initial conditions up to May 19 show that the onset may be around May 28,” they said , adding the model error for their forecast was three days.