New Delhi, Apr 18 (FN Bureau) Parts of West Bengal and Bihar may not get much relief from the scorching heat over the next three days, the weather office has predicted. The Indian Meteorological Department said this morning that heat wave conditions are very likely in some pockets of Gangetic West Bengal — areas to the south of the Ganges — and Bihar over the next three days. Similar conditions are likely in sub-Himalayan Bengal, Sikkim and Odisha over the next 24 hours. Jharkhand was likely to see high temperatures over the next two days, the weather office said. Pockets of west Uttar Pradesh and east Uttar Pradesh are also likely to experience heat wave conditions for two days, as do parts of coastal Andhra Pradesh. “Heat Wave conditions are prevailing in isolated pockets over Gangetic West Bengal since last 6 days; Coastal Andhra Pradesh since last 4 days and Bihar since last 3 days,” the weather office noted.India is bracing for a scorching summer as weather stations across large parts of the country record high temperatures. As many as 36 weather stations recorded maximum temperatures above 42 degrees Celsius yesterday.
According to the weather office, Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj and Odisha’s Baripada were the hottest cities yesterday, sizzling at 44.6 degrees and 44.2 degrees, respectively. Delhi recorded a maximum temperature of 40.6 degrees Celsius yesterday. This was the third day in a row that the national capital’s maximum temperature settled above 40 degrees Celsius. On the western coast, Maharashtra is likely to see a 2-3 degrees rise in maximum temperatures, according to the weather office. The state recently witnessed the tragic deaths of 13 people after they suffered heatstroke while attending a state award event.In the east, Bengal has been reeling under a heat wave for nearly a week now. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has directed that all educational institutions in the state be shut till Saturday.Temperatures are high in the Northeast too. Tripura’s capital Agartala yesterday recorded a maximum temperature of 38 degrees, about 5 degrees over normal. The state government has asked government-run and government-aided schools to stay shut till April 23. Assam’s Guwahati, Manipur’s Imphal and Meghalaya Shillong, too, recorded maximum temperatures 4-5 degrees above normal.