Northern India on the boil with heat waves disrupting normal lives and raising health concerns

NEW DELHI AP A blistering heat wave is sweeping across northern India with temperatures soaring above the normal disrupting daily life and raising wellness concerns The mercury shot up to C F in Sri Ganganagar a desert city in the northwestern state of Rajasthan on Monday according to the Indian Meteorological Department The record for the country is C F set in May in Rajasthan s city of Phalodi The searing heat is not just a seasonal discomfort but underscores a growing challenge for the country s overwhelmed wellness infrastructure A prolonged exposure to extreme temperatures often causes heat strokes mainly impacting the poor outdoor workers children and the elderly Last year a monthslong heatwave across swathes of India killed more than people and led to over suspected cases of heat stroke according to input from the strength ministry The Indian capital New Delhi saw its first heatwave of the season with temperatures soaring past C F in one of its neighborhoods on Monday The swelter wasn t just numerical as the real-feel temperature the heat index factoring in relative humidity was a couple of notches higher Ryan Rodriguez a -year-old tourist from the U S was seen sipping a lemonade to keep himself cool in Delhi It s pretty hot here I just came from a trip of the Middle East so I am sort of adjusting to it But this is much hotter than Virginia I haven t seen any worse heat than this in India so far stated Rodriguez For autorickshaw driver Pradeep Kumar the scorching heat was taking a toll on his vitality and impacting household income as people avoided daytime commuting This heat makes us very tired We drink water to keep up But several times our strength gets affected Kumar revealed I feel troubled The weather department has issued heatwave warnings for the next couple of days in northern India that include the states of Rajasthan Uttar Pradesh Haryana and the New Delhi national capital region Particular parts of those ares may witness light showers from Thursday bringing relief India declares a heat wave whenever temperatures are above C F in the plains and C F or more in its hilly regions Heatwaves are usually released from March to June and in specific cases in July The peak month is May but it was relatively cooler this season due to weather aberrations amid multiple westerly disturbances stated G P Sharma president at private weather forecaster Skymet In Uttar Pradesh the country s bulk populous state a punishing heatwave made people s lives complex as power grids struggled to keep pace with the soaring electricity demand There is no light for hours in the afternoon just when the heat is unbearable declared Shabnam Khan a homemaker in Lucknow the state s capital city The fan stops the cooler doesn t work and we are left sitting on the floor drenched in sweat The state recorded its highest-ever electricity demand of megawatts late Sunday as millions of homes and businesses ran cooling systems to beat the heat Representatives expect demand to surpass megawatts in the coming weeks Atul Kumar Singh a senior scientist at the Regional Meteorological Centre in Lucknow revealed the battle against this brutal summer heat was far from over as seasonal monsoon rains were still weeks away We are seeing the worst of both heat and humidity This is no longer just a matter of discomfort It is becoming a populace strength crisis noted Singh Banerjee stated from Lucknow India Associated Press video journalist Piyush Nagpal in New Delhi contributed to the summary Source