Heatwave in many areas in western states, above normal temperatures in north: IMD

New Delhi: As several parts of India saw above normal maximum temperatures on Wednesday, heatwave to severe heatwave conditions gripped many places in Gujarat’s Saurashtra and Kutch regions and isolated areas in Maharashtra's Vidarbha region, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

It said that markedly above normal (5.1 degrees Celsius or more) maximum temperatures were recorded in most places in Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi.

West and east Rajasthan, many places in Punjab, east and west Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and east and west Madhya Pradesh, Konkan and Goa, Vidarbha, and Chhattisgarh also witnessed markedly above normal maximum temperatures, the IMD said.

In its monthly forecast on February 28, the department had said that above normal heatwave days were expected over most parts of the country between March and May.

Among the places in Gujarat that experienced heatwave to severe heatwave conditions were Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar, which saw 7.2 degrees Celsius and 6.4 degrees Celsius above normal maximum temperatures on Wednesday.

The IMD said that parts of Gujarat would continue to witness such conditions till March 13.

"Heatwave to severe heatwave conditions very likely in many/some places over… Saurashtra and Kutch on… March 12, and heatwave conditions in isolated pockets over Gujarat region on March 12 and March 13, and over Saurashtra and Kutch on March 13," the IMD said.

Isolated places in Assam, Meghalaya, Jammu-Kashmir Ladakh-Gilgit-Baltistan-Muzaffarabad, also witnessed markedly above normal maxium temperatures, the IMD said.