With maximum temperatures at most places in Haryana and Punjab soaring beyond 40 degrees on Friday, heat wave conditions returned to the region after a respite of over 10 days.
Haryana’s Hisar town was the hottest at 44.3 degrees Celsius, three degrees above average, while Karnal and Narnaul towns recorded highs of 40 and 41 degrees respectively.
Chandigarh recorded a high of 39.8 degrees.
Patiala was the hottest in Punjab at 41.6 degrees, while ludhiana and Amritsar recorded 41.5 and 41 degrees.
Met officials have said that the heat wave will continue and weather will largely remain dry over the next 48 hours.
In the hills of Himachal Pradesh, the mercury rose on Friday, but the Met office forecast rains and thundershowers soon.
A fresh western disturbance is likely to be active in the region from May 16. The hill state saw the increase in maximum temperature by three to four degrees, while the minimum rose by one to two degrees.
Shimla saw 26.8 degrees Celsius, whereas the minimum was 16.4 degrees. Chamba, Dalhousie and Keylong towns saw 47 mm, 29 mm and eight mm rainfall respectively since Thursday.