Odisha continues to sizzle, parts of J-K receive rain, snow

Heatwave intensified in parts of Odisha while the northern plains experienced moderate temperatures even as some areas of Jammu and Kashmir received rains and snow, and the arterial Srinagar-Jammu national highway remained closed for the fourth consecutive day today.
It was a pleasant day in the national capital with both maximum and minimum temperatures settling below normal levels.
The maximum temperature was 33.6 degrees Celsius, a notch below the season's average while the minimum temperature was 16.5 degrees Celsius, three notches below normal, said a Met department official.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the arterial Srinagar-Jammu national highway, connecting Kashmir Valley with the rest of the country, remained closed for the fourth consecutive day due to landslides and shooting stones triggered by rains and snowfall.

Rainfall occurred at regular intervals in most of the areas along the highway yesterday, especially between Jawahar Tunnel and Ramban, resulting in fresh landslide in Ramsoo area and shooting stones at Panthyal and other places, an official said.
Kashmir Valley continued to receive intermittent rainfall during the night, while the higher reaches, including the famous tourist resort of Pahalgam, recorded fresh snowfall.

Pahalgam received around 7 cm of snow. There were reports of snowfall in some other areas in the higher reaches of the Valley as well.
Srinagar received 3.4 mm of rains, while Kupwara in north Kashmir recorded 7.7 mm of rainfall. South Kashmir's Kokernag area recorded 27 mm of rainfall during the night while the neighbouring Qazigund received 22.8 mm of rains till this morning.

Light rains and thundershowers brought down temperatures in eastern parts of Uttar Pradesh, bringing respite from hot weather conditions. Allahabad recorded the highest maximum temperature of 41.9 degrees Celsius, the MeT department said.
Heatwave intensified in many parts of Odisha with Balangir recording the highest temperature of 44 degrees Celsius.
The mercury hovered above 40 degrees Celsius in at least 10 places, mostly in western Odisha, while the coastal areas witnessed overcast conditions, the MeT department said.
Jharsuguda and Hirakud both registered maximum temperatures of 42.6 degrees Celsius. In Bhawanipatna and Sambalpur the maximum temperatures were 42.5 degrees Celsius and 42.3 degrees Celsius respectively.

In Himachal Pradesh, minimum temperatures dropped marginally in mid and higher hills of the state even as the region experienced a dry but windy day.
A medium danger avalanche warning was issued for tribal areas and higher hills of the state.
Una was hottest in the region with maximum temperature of 33 degrees Celsius, while Nahan and Sundernagar recorded a high of 29.1 degrees Celsius and 27.2 degrees Celsius.
Keylong and Kalpa in tribal Lahaul and Spiti and Kinnaur districts and Manali recorded minimum temperatures of minus 0.6 degrees Celsius, 1 degree Celsius and 4 degrees Celsius respectively.
In Punjab and Haryana, maximum temperatures stayed around normal levels in several parts of both the states with Chandigarh recording a high of 32.5 degrees Celsius.

Ambala, in Haryana recorded maximum temperature of 32.8 degrees Celsius, while Hisar and Karnal registered a high of 34.5 degrees Celsius and 33.8 degrees Celsius respectively, the MeT department said.
In Punjab, the maximum temperature in Amritsar was 30.8 degrees Celsius, one notch below normal while in Ludhiana and Patiala the maximum temperatures were 32.1 degrees Celsius and 33.4 degrees Celsius respectively.
Kota and Barmer were the hottest places in Rajasthan with both recording maximum temperature of 36.4 degree Celsius.
Bikaner and Ajmer both registered a high of 34.5 degrees Celsius while in other places maximum temperatures were below 34 degrees Celsius.

Temperatures rose in most parts of Bihar with the mercury soaring to 41 degrees Celsius in Gaya, making it the hottest place in the state.
Patna, recorded maximum temperature of 39.8 degrees Celsius, while Bhagalpur registered a high of 39.7 degrees Celsius.
Day temperatures were above normal in parts of Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha region, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu.