Women cover their faces to shield themselves from the scorching heat in Bhubaneswar
Bhubaneswar: People in the city on Wednesday experienced one of the hottest days of this summer with mercury touching 41.2°C.IMD officials said mercury was hovering at 40°C or more in coastal pockets for the first time this month, along with rising in western and interior pockets of the state.City temperature of the day was 3°C more compared to normal and highest during the month in the last two years. In 2025, city temperature touched 39.7°C on April 5, the highest during the month, IMD report said.Manorama Mohanty, head of regional IMD centre, said inflow of dry hot wind from northwesterly direction influenced sharp rise in mercury level in the state, including in coastal pockets. A sharp rise in mercury forced many people to stay indoors in the city and at several other places.With mercury rising, residents were seen wearing summer caps and some covering their head and face with cotton clothes. Most shops were not open after 12 noon. Since it is govt-declared holidays for four days in city, school buses and other modes of transport for schools were not seen on the road, with parents preferring to take their children for tuition in the afternoon, avoiding the harsh forenoon summer.“I usually use my motorcycle to buy small essential items from the nearby market.
But on Wednesday, I couldn’t brave the heat and took my car out to go to the market. One will get sunstroke if exposed to the heat while riding a motorcycle. Unless one is travelling in a car, it is certain that he will feel fatigued. The heat was pinching the skin,” said Pramod Sharma, a resident of Nayapalli.At 24 more places, temperature touched 40°C or more while Talcher at 43.5°C recorded the day’s second-highest in the state.IMD forecast said there would be no large change in prevailing trend of mercury level for next four days. Thereafter it will fall by 2°C to 3°C.“It was unbearable to move out in the scorching summer during the day,” said Dinabandhu Boral, a retired teacher in the city. A similar feeling was shared by many people in the city as they preferred to stay indoors.Sharp rise in mercury level also prompted sale of cold drinks, sugarcane juice, etc at many roadside kiosks, said a roadside businessman in the city.
