A searing heatwave continues to sweep across north and Central India, and there seems to be no respite in sight. The temperature in Delhi and NCR hit a high of 46ºC today. But that's still slightly better than Nagpur and Chandrapur in Maharashtra, which continued to be the hottest places in the country for the second day. In Chandrapur, which has the Tadoba tiger reserve, temperatures rose to 48ºC on Wednesday.
Instagram content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Rajasthan is predictably hot: Jaipur temperatures are swinging between 43ºC and 32ºC, while Udaipur will be only marginally better: 41ºC and 28ºC.
Even Uttarakhand is bearing the brunt of the summer sun. Dehradun saw a maximum temperature of 41ºC today. And temperatures are likely to be in the late 30s-low 40s for the next few days. Rishikesh is baking too, with temperatures going up to 42ºC this week. The heat continues to aggravate forest fires in the state, where thousands of hectares of land have been scorched by 73 separate forest fires this season.
In the wake of the unstoppable heat wave, people are advised not to step out in peak sun hours and to stay hydrated and covered up against the sun by the National Disaster Management Authority. The heatwave condition is forecasted to persist over the week.
Cooler options
Tourists can expect some respite in Nainital, where the temperature is around 26ºC by day and a pleasant 13ºC at night. Shimla too, is cooler. The temperature is likely to be between 24ºC and 12ºC this week. Srinagar is also a lot pleasant: maximum temperature will be 25ºC over the next few days, though there's some rain coming. Gangtok is nice and rainy, bringing temperatures down to 21ºC (max) and 15ºC (minimum). In the South, Coorg is getting some steady rain and will see temperatures between 29ºC and 13ºC.
But then again, we had this coming. Scientists have predicted that 2019 will be the hottest recorded year in human history. They also just recently pushed to formally acknowledge our era as the Anthropocene, or a time when humankind has maximum impact on the environment. Will it help?