NEW DELHI : Rajasthan is currently grappling with a severe heatwave that has tragically claimed the lives of 12 people over the past two days, up from nine fatalities reported just a day earlier. The deaths have occurred in the districts of Barmer, Balotra, Jalore, and Bhilwara. On Friday, a mother and son succumbed to the heat in Pali district, highlighting the dire conditions residents of the desert state are facing.
This tragic news follows a record-breaking temperature of 49 degrees Celsius in Phalodi on Friday and 48.8 degrees Celsius recorded in Barmer on Thursday, the second-highest temperature in 28 years. The highest maximum temperature of 49.9 degrees was recorded in Barmer in 1995. Although there was a slight drop on Friday, temperatures remained perilously high at 48.2 degrees Celsius in the district.
The Meteorological Department has issued a ‘red alert’ due to the forecast of severe heat in many districts of the state for the next three days, warning that temperatures in some cities could rise to 49 to 50 degrees Celsius.
On Thursday, intense heatwave conditions were recorded at most places in Western Rajasthan and some places in Eastern Rajasthan. Official data showed that at least 23 places in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh recorded maximum temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius or above on Friday.
The extreme heat will continue in parts of Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, west Uttar Pradesh, and west Madhya Pradesh until May 28. This means thousands of voters may face scorching temperatures when they step out to exercise their franchise in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on Saturday. Around 11.43 crore people are eligible to vote in the sixth phase during which polling will be held in 58 seats spread across eight states and Union territories.
Maximum temperatures settled at 45.4 degrees in Haryana’s Sirsa, 44.8 degrees in Punjab’s Bathinda, and 45.5 degrees in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. The Met office issued a ‘red’ warning for Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, west Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat, emphasizing a “very high likelihood” of heat illness and heatstroke.