Mamata calls emergency meeting

Western and southern parts of West Bengal faced extreme heat wave, prompting Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to call an emergency meeting.

Bankura topped the maximum temperature chart at 43.7 degrees Celsius, while Panagarh in West Burdwan district followed closely at 43.5 degrees Celsius, the Met office said.

Five districts of sub-Himalayan West Bengal – Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar and Alipurduar – are likely to experience cool weather with the Met Office forecasting light to moderate rains over the next three days.

Other places that recorded above 40 degrees Celsius are Asansol (43.3), Purulia (42.8), Burdwan (42.4), Kalaikunda (42.1), Sriniketan (41.9), Baharampur (41.4) and Medinipur (41.5), according to the Met Office.

In view of the heat wave situation, the state government has issued guidelines, asking people to take all precautionary measures.

It asked farmers to avoid field work after 10 am and advised them to harvest Boro paddy when it is 75 percent ripe.