No respite from scorching heat in Jammu, mercury crosses 41 deg C

Jammu, May 18 (PTI) The mercury continued its upward trend in Jammu on Saturday with the maximum temperature settling at 41.6 degrees Celsius, over three notches above the season’s average, the meteorological department said.

However, the minimum temperature recorded in the winter capital city was near normal at 23.9 degrees Celsius, the official said.

Jammu is reeling under heat wave conditions for the past week and the maximum temperature in the city crossed the 40-degree Celsius mark for the first time this season on May 16.

The upward trend in the temperatures has prompted the local residents to seek early summer vacation in the schools of their wards.

A MeT official said Katra, the base camp for the pilgrims visiting Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, recorded a high of 36 degrees Celsius and a low of 22.5 degrees Celsius on Saturday.

The Kashmir Valley, on the other hand, continued to enjoy pleasant weather even as the mercury is hovering a few notches above normal for the past couple of days.

The summer capital Srinagar on Saturday recorded a high of 29.4 degrees Celsius and a low of 14.5 degrees Celsius, the official said, adding that the maximum and minimum temperatures were 4.2 and 3.1 notches above normal, respectively.

The weather office has predicted isolated to scattered rains in Jammu and Kashmir over the next two days.