New Delhi, May 19: North India today remained in the grip of searing heat with mercury staying above the 40-degree mark in most places even as widespread rains lashed Himachal Pradesh.
Barmer in Rajasthan was the hottest place in the region at 45.4 degrees followed by Churu and Kota which reeled at 44.8 C and 44.4 C respectively.
Elsewhere in the desert state, Jodhpur recorded a maximum temperature of 44.3 C while Jaisalmer, Sikar and Chittorgarh registered an identical temperature of 44 degrees. Bikaner, Sriganganagar, Jaipur and Ajmer too experienced intense hot conditions at 43.5 C, 43 C, 42.8 C and 42 C respectively.
In Punjab and Haryana too, the heat wave continued unabated with Hisar recording a maximum temperature of 44.1 C, four notches above normal.
The maximum in Karnal settled at 42 C, four notches above normal, and Ambala 41.4 C, two degrees above normal.
–Agencies