A heatwave warning was issued for Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Vidarbha
A red heatwave warning was issued for Maharashtra's drought-prone Vidarbha district, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan, where Churu recorded a day temperature of 50 degrees Celsius - the second hottest day ever recorded in May since May 19, 2010. The meteorological department also issued a red rain alert for Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh till May 28.
On Tuesday, temperatures above 47 degrees Celsius were recorded in Delhi, Maharashtra's Nagpur and Akola districts, Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh and Hisar in Haryana. Mercury soared past the 46 degree-mark in Agra and Banda cities in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan's Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Kota, Sri Ganganagar and Jaipur districts, and Maharashtra's Chandrapur and Wardha areas, the daily weather bulletin by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) showed.
Temperatures unusually extreme for May were reported from parts of Delhi, making Tuesday the hottest day of the season yet. The Palam Observatory recorded 47.6 degrees Celsius - highest since May 18, 2010 - and Safdarjung touched 46 degrees, last recorded on May 19, 2002.
Severe heatwave conditions prevailed over Haryana, where Hisar district was the hottest place at 48 degrees Celsius. The MeT forecast that heatwave conditions will prevail in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi for the next two days and over Uttar Pradesh for next three-four days.
Relief is likely in the National Capital Region (NCR) after May 28, when a western disturbance is likely to bring light rainfall, head of IMD's regional forecasting centre Kuldeep Srivastava said. "Dust storm and thunderstorm, with winds of up to 60 kmph are likely over the NCR, on Friday and Saturday," he added.
The IMD issues colour-coded warnings depending on the intensity of any weather system in ascending order - green, yellow, orange and red.