LAHORE, March 17: Persistent dry weather in plains of the Punjab since the start of this month has increased the temperature, bringing summer almost without the intermediary spring.
The nights have been comfortable but the days are hot with no respite from the blazing sun, making people start using fans and air-conditioners much before the start of summer.
The maximum temperature in Lahore on Wednesday was recorded at 36.9 degrees Celsius and the minimum at 17.7 degrees Celsius with 75 per cent humidity in the morning and 24 per cent in the evening.
The local Met office said similar weather conditions prevailed all over the province. "It is really hot in Sindh and parts of Balochistan." The chief meteorologist attributed the sudden change in weather to the long spell of dry weather in the plains of province. The westerly systems in February caused rain or snowfall mostly in the hilly areas in the north.
He said there was no chance of rain at least during the next 48 hours. But if it rained afterwards, temperature would reduce by a maximum of five degrees Celsius for a few days.
He said the sudden change in weather was not a unique phenomenon as it happened after every one or two decades. Temperatures would gradually increase till June 30 and the immediate benefit of the current increase was early snowmelt which the country required at the moment, he said.
