Heatwave sweeps across north India, leaves 9 dead in Rajasthan | India News – Times of India

JAISALMER/JODHPUR/JAIPUR: Intense heatwave conditions which have gripped Rajasthan for the past 10 days with mercury spiking to 49 degrees Celsius took nine lives Thursday – four each in Balotra and Jalore districts, and one in Jaisalmer. Barmer, from which Balotra was carved out last year, recorded 48.8 degrees Celsius, while Jalore saw the maximum soaring to 47.3 degrees Celsius.
Met office said some places in western Rajasthan may continue to experience temperatures shooting up to 49 degrees Celsius.
Radhey Shyam Sharma, director of Jaipur Met office, said, “No relief through western disturbances is expected in the near future.”
In Jalore, heatstroke killed Kamla Devi (42) from village Safada, Popat Lal (30) from village Sangadi in Ahore sub-division, and two elderly persons near Jalore’s railway station. In Balotra, Sinendra Singh, who fell ill due to heatstroke at his Pachpadra refinery workstation Wednesday, succumbed on the way to a Jodhpur hospital. A worker from West Bengal died during treatment, and a Tilwara youth, Heer Singh, died outside Balotra railway station. A 60-year-old man died in his field in Baytu. In Jaisalmer, Deva, a singer from Babu Ram Meghwal, collapsed and died while singing bhajans at pilgrimage site Bhaisaki.
Abrupt power outages have aggravated heatwave conditions even indoors, residents complained.
Meanwhile, official data showed that at least 16 places in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh recorded maximum temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius or above Thursday. The heat wave will continue for at least five more days, IMD said. It issued a ‘red’ warning for Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, and west UP, emphasising a “very high likelihood” of heat illness and heatstroke in all age groups.
(With inputs from PTI)