Heat wave death toll in UP touches 24, snow in Amarnath

New Delhi, May 8 (UNI) Three more deaths took the toll to 24 in the heat wave in Uttar Pradesh as hot and dusty winds blew across Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh today.

Meanwhile, the holy Amarnath cave in south Kashmir experienced fresh snowfall.

Two people died in Jhansi and one in Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh, reports reaching here said.

Severe heat wave conditions in the national capital abated today with the temperature plummeting to 41.4 degrees Celsius, one degree above normal.

Weathermen said the heat wave sweeping through Delhi in the last week, which saw the mercury touching a five year high of 44.5 degrees Celcius on Saturday, had abated.

''The heat wave that has been sweeping Delhi since last week has abated,''the weather office said.

''Delhi is unlikely to witness, at least in the next weeks or so, the heat wave conditions that were experienced from Friday to Sunday, when temperatures of around 44 degrees Celcius, five degree above normal were witnessed. Mostly, the temperature would hover around the 41 degrees Celcius or 42 degrees Celcius mark,''they said.

Hot and dusty winds blew across Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh during the day, lambasting the people facing frequent power-cuts and water scarcity that have added to their woes.

People sweltered under intense heat wave conditions in Hissar although the mercury plummeted to 45.2 degrees Celsius following overcast skies. The town had reported 47 degrees Celsius yesterday, the highest temperature during this summer so far.

However, the temperature hovered two degrees below normal at Ambala and Karnal, recording a high of 37.8 and 37.5 degrees Celsius respectively.

In Punjab, scorching heat wave lashed Amritsar where the maximum of 43.2 degrees Celsius, five degrees above normal, followed by Ludhiana at 40.6. The mercury fell by three points at Patiala recording a temperature of 39.5 degrees Celsius .

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