By IANS,
New Delhi : People across north and central India had a blistering Sunday as the sun blazed down and the heat wave threw normal life out of gear.
In the capital, the people were worst off because electricity supply was erratic and drinking water shortages hit many localities. With mercury rising to 42 degrees Celsius, the peoples’ mettle was put to test.
“We haven’t received drinking water since Saturday. In this heat, people need more water. The authorities should at least provide the bare minimum,” said Gita, a housewife living in the Vasant Enclave area of the city.
“The power cut is another problem. Many a time, the power goes off just when we have to switch on the water pump. So,we are unable to fill our water tank,” she said.
But to therespite of Gita – and millions of people in and around Delhi – the weather gods turned soft by late afternoon. A dust storm gathered an lashed the capital city and a shower brought the mercury down by a few notches.
The weatherman has forecast dry weather conditions in the entire region until Tuesday.
According to the late Sunday evening bulletin of the meteorological department, intense heat wave condition will prevail in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and north Rajasthan, during the period.
People in coastal Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu will also experience warm weather, although in some parts the people enjoyed welcome rains brought in by the cyclonic storm Nargis.
The highest maximum temperature was recorded in Hissar in Haryana at 46.2 degrees Celsius.
Rain and thundershowers will continue in the northeastern states of Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, and in the sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Orissa.
Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and the Lakshadweep Islands in southern India will also receive rains and thundershowers.
The following were the maximum and minimum temperatures and rainfall in major cities for the 24 hours till Sunday morning, with figures in brackets denoting deviations from the average. City Maximum Temperature (C) Minimum Temperature (C) Rainfall (mm)
New Delhi 42.6 (+4) 27.1 (+3) Nil
Mumbai 32.6 (0) 25.2 (+1) Nil
Chennai 41.8 (+7) 27.5 (0) Nil
Kolkata 38.1 (+2) 25.4 (-1) 1.0
Ahmedabad 40.7 (0) 25.8 (+1) Nil
Bangalore 35.4 (+2) 22.2 (0) Nil
Bhopal 41.0 (+1) 27.5 (+2) Nil
Bhubaneswar 44.0 (+6) 27.6 (+2) Nil
Chandigarh 42.6 (+6) 21.4 (-1) Nil
Dehradun 38.0 (+3) 22.0 (+2) Nil
Goa 33.4 (0) 24.9 (-2) Nil
Guwahati 30.6 (0) 23.5 (+1) Nil
Hyderabad 40.0 (+1) 25.6 (0) Nil
Jaipur 44.4 (+5) 30.2 (+6) Nil
Lucknow 42.0 (+2) 25.8 (+2) Nil
Nagpur 42.5 (+1) 29.0 (+2) Nil
Patna 37.0 (-3) 25.5 (+1) Nil
Pune 36.0 (-1) 21.8 (+1) Nil
Srinagar 29.5 (+7) 11.4 (+2) Nil
Thiruvananthapuram 33.7 (+2) 24.6 (0) Nil