The vacation in government and aided schools, scheduled to start on May 6, will now begin on Monday, April 22. Several private schools, too, have brought forward their summer break by about a week.

In Kolkata, daytime temperatures hover around 40 degrees Celsius, and high humidity reaches up to 87 per cent.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for heatwave conditions in East Midnapore, West Midnapore, Purulia, Jhargram, Bankura, West Burdwan, East Burdwan, and Birbhum from Saturday to Monday. Murshidabad and Nadia have been placed under a yellow alert for heatwave conditions. According to the Met officials, the mercury is expected to exceed 40 degrees Celsius in the upcoming days.”

On Wednesday, Panagarh had a scorching temperature of 43 degrees Celsius, while Bankura and Midnapore recorded 41.4 degrees Celsius. Purulia, Barakpore, and Sriniketan experienced temperatures of 40.5 degrees Celsius, while Asansol recorded 41 degrees Celsius, and Krishnagar recorded 39 degrees Celsius.

“It is likely to be above normal by 3-5 degrees Celsius during the next two days and above normal by 4-7 in subsequent three days at many places over Gangetic West Bengal,” said a Met official.

In Southern Bengal, a heatwave warning is in effect, while in Northern Bengal, it’s been raining continuously. Thunderstorms with lightning and strong winds, ranging between 30-40 kmph, are currently ongoing in Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Alipurduar, and Cooch Behar. On the other hand, North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur, and Malda are experiencing dry weather.