Civic workers remove dead fish floating at a partially dried up lake in Ambattur, Chennai, India, Tuesday, June 18.
In pictures: Water crisis and heatwave in India
Civic workers remove dead fish floating at a partially dried up lake in Ambattur, Chennai, India, Tuesday, June 18.
R.Parthibhan/AP

Published 2:54 AM EDT, Tue June 4, 2019

Swathes of India are sweltering under a severe heatwave with temperatures touching a blistering 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) in the northwest of the country.

The hottest place in India was the town of Churu in the desert state of Rajasthan, where the mercury rose to an unbearable 50.8 degrees Celsius (123.44 degrees Fahrenheit) on June 1. The following day temperatures there hit a high of 48.9 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit).

Chennai's water supply comes from four reservoirs, all of which are almost completely dry because the monsoon rain that replenishes them has not come on time. Satellite imagery is making very clear just how low their reservoirs are.

Severe heatwave warnings are currently in effect for portions of north and west India. The worst of the heat is expected to abate in the next few days but heatwave warnings will persist through the middle of the week.

Indian women from the aboriginal 'Kol' community collect drinking water at a well in Nawargawa village, some 30km from Jabalpur, in Madhya Pradesh state on June 16.
Indian women from the aboriginal 'Kol' community collect drinking water at a well in Nawargawa village, some 30km from Jabalpur, in Madhya Pradesh state on June 16.
Uma Shaknkar Mishara/AFP/Getty Images
An Indian shepherd walks with their lifestock at the dried out Puzhal reservoir on the outskirts of Chennai.
An Indian shepherd walks with their lifestock at the dried out Puzhal reservoir on the outskirts of Chennai.
Arun Sankar/AFP/Getty Images
A boy jumps into the Ganges River to cool off on a hot summer day in Kolkata, India, on Monday, June 3.
A boy jumps into the Ganges River to cool off on a hot summer day in Kolkata, India, on Monday, June 3.
Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters
A general view of a lake running dry on a hot summer day near Ajmer on Sunday, June 2. Temperatures passed 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) in northern India as an unrelenting heatwave triggered warnings of water shortages and heatstroke.
A general view of a lake running dry on a hot summer day near Ajmer on Sunday, June 2. Temperatures passed 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) in northern India as an unrelenting heatwave triggered warnings of water shortages and heatstroke.
Himanshu Sharma/AFP/Getty Images
An Indian girl eats an ice lolly during a hot day in Churu in Rajastahn on Monday, June 3.
An Indian girl eats an ice lolly during a hot day in Churu in Rajastahn on Monday, June 3.
Money Sharma/AFP/Getty Images
Monkeys cool themselves off in a pond during a hot day in Allahabad on Sunday, June 2.
Monkeys cool themselves off in a pond during a hot day in Allahabad on Sunday, June 2.
Ritesh Shukla/NurPhoto via ZUMA Press
Indian youths play in a swimming pool on a hot summer day on the outskirts of Amritsar on June 2.
Indian youths play in a swimming pool on a hot summer day on the outskirts of Amritsar on June 2.
Narinder Nanu/AFP/Getty Images
An Indian auto driver rests under a bridge on a hot summer afternoon in Allahabad on Sunday, June 2.
An Indian auto driver rests under a bridge on a hot summer afternoon in Allahabad on Sunday, June 2.
Sanjay Kanojia/AFP/Getty Images
Indian laborers sleep on a side walk in Prayagraj on Sunday, June 2.
Indian laborers sleep on a side walk in Prayagraj on Sunday, June 2.
Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP
Indian villagers take buckets down a well running dry to collect drinking water at Padal village of the district of Samba, some 45 kilometers from Jammu, on Sunday, June 2. A heatwave triggered warnings of water shortages and heatstroke.
Indian villagers take buckets down a well running dry to collect drinking water at Padal village of the district of Samba, some 45 kilometers from Jammu, on Sunday, June 2. A heatwave triggered warnings of water shortages and heatstroke.
Rakesh Bakshi/AFP/Getty Images
Commuters cover their faces with clothes to protect themselves from sun on a hot summer day in Hyderabad on Monday, June 3.
Commuters cover their faces with clothes to protect themselves from sun on a hot summer day in Hyderabad on Monday, June 3.
Mahesh Kumar A./AP
An Indian man rests under a bridge during a hot summer afternoon in Allahabad on Sunday, June 2.
An Indian man rests under a bridge during a hot summer afternoon in Allahabad on Sunday, June 2.
Sanjay Kanojia/AFP/Getty Images
Indian volunteers distribute sweet water during a hot summer day, in Amritsar on Sunday, June 2.
Indian volunteers distribute sweet water during a hot summer day, in Amritsar on Sunday, June 2.
Narinder Nanu/AFP/Getty Images
An Indian man uses a towel to wipe the sweat on his face on a hot and humid summer day in Hyderabad on Monday, June 3.
An Indian man uses a towel to wipe the sweat on his face on a hot and humid summer day in Hyderabad on Monday, June 3.
Mahesh Kumar A./AP
People fill containers with water from a mobile tanker at a slum area on the outskirts of Jammu on Monday, June 3.
People fill containers with water from a mobile tanker at a slum area on the outskirts of Jammu on Monday, June 3.
Channi Anand/AP
An Indian laborer takes a rest under the shade of an auto-rickshaw on a hot summer day in Jammu on Monday, June 3.
An Indian laborer takes a rest under the shade of an auto-rickshaw on a hot summer day in Jammu on Monday, June 3.
Channi Anand/AP
Air coolers are seen on display at a shop in Churu in Rajasthan on Monday, June 3.
Air coolers are seen on display at a shop in Churu in Rajasthan on Monday, June 3.
Money Sharma/AFP/Getty Images