The heat wave continued across the northern region of the country on Wednesday where Sriganganagar in Rajasthan sizzled at a high of 49.3 degree celsius.
The high temperatures in the desert state were compounded by severe dust storms, adding to the woes of the residents.
The met office said Jaipur recorded a maximum of 44.9 degree celsius, Jaisalmer 48 degrees, Pilani 47.7 degrees and Churu 46.8 degrees.
Punjab and Haryana also experienced a very hot day as temperatures stayed above the 45 degrees mark at many places, including in Hisar and Amritsar where the daytime temperatures were registered at 47.9 and 47 degrees respectively.
Ambala saw the mercury touch 44.1 degrees, four notches above normal while Karnal recorded a high of 45 degrees, four marks above normal. Both towns recorded the hottest day so far of the season.
The union territory of Chandigarh had a high of 43.2 degrees, according to the met office.
Ludhiana and Patiala in Punjab experienced daytime temperatures of 46.5 and 45.6 degrees, five and six degrees above normal respectively.
In view of the intense heat, the Haryana government ordered all its and private-aided schools to be closed in the state from May 27 to 31.
In the national capital, the maximum temperature was five degrees above normal at 46.3 degrees while the minimum temperature was recorded at 30.5 degrees, six degrees above normal.
Temperatures were also high in Himachal Pradesh where Una was the hottest at 43 degrees. The Queen of the Hills had a high of 30 degrees while it crossed the 41 degrees mark in Mandi and Sundernagar.
Uttarakhand state capital Dehradun had a maximum temperature of 39.4 degrees.
