With the sun beating down mercilessly, propelling mercury to touch 40 degrees Celsius in some of the districts in south Bengal, the state school education department, taking no chances, has brought forward the summer vacation from the date announced earlier.
According to reports, most parts of the country are likely to experience higher temperatures than usual during this summer, especially the Central and northwestern parts of Uttar Pradesh.
The Union Health Minister also advised senior officials to meet with states for better coordination and understanding.
Citizens of Kolkata are likely to feel the blistering heat for the next few days.
A dangerous heat wave is baking the eastern US, with several cities breaking records and the heat stretching from Minnesota…
The death of 11 people at an event in Navi Mumbai from a heatstroke is a grim reminder of what the summer has in store for India. Already, warnings have been issued by experts and several states have cautioned citizens not to step outdoors in the hours between noon and 4 p.m.
The IMD anticipated that the heat wave would last till 19 April in Kolkata and many districts of south Bengal.
In East and West Burdwan, classes in government schools are being held in the morning. The Met office has predicted that there would not be any rain before 22 April.
Mixing of air above the surface was not possible, which caused a recording of more than 31 degree C temperature at 8.30 in the morning, said CEC director Dr SC Sahu.
The IMD special bulletin announced an orange alert for the districts of South Bengal, including Kolkata, South and North 24-Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly, East Burdwan, Midnapore and parts of North Bengal between 12-16 April.
