Heat-related death toll reaches 48; rain in North India brings temperature down Showers in most parts of North India brought the mercury down on Wednesday providing relief to the people bearing the brunt of the heat wave even as the toll due to scorching weather in West Bengal peaked to 48. The temperature in Delhi remained at below normal levels throughout Wednesday with the maximum at 38.7 degrees Celsius due to light showers in the last 24 hours. The minimum was 26 degrees, down from Tuesday's 29.5 degrees. However, humidity rose to 65 per cent. In West Bengal, 15 more deaths were reported from West Medinipur district over the last three days, while one more occurred in Bankura on Tuesday night. As of Wednesday, 48 persons have lost their lives in southern districts of the State. People in parts of Punjab and Haryana also heaved a sigh of relief with the mercury dropping by up to five notches below normal. Thanks to the rain lashing various parts of the region, the maximum temperature fell below 40 in both States. In Punjab, Amritsar, which had been the hottest place in the region for the last several days, had a maximum temperature of 37.4 degrees, four notches below normal, the weatherman said on Wednesday. Ludhiana saw the mercury settle at 36.5, five degrees below normal, while Patiala recorded a high of 37.8. In Haryana, Ambala and Hisar recorded a maximum of 39 degrees each and both districts received a rainfall of 2.3 mm and 3.6 mm respectively. Karnal, Rohtak and Bhiwani had a high of 37.8, 39.6 and 38.6 respectively. The weather office, in its forecast, said light rain or thundershower may occur at isolated places in Punjab and Haryana. However, heat wave affected normal life in Rajasthan except some areas, which received light showers leading to a drop in temperature. Churu recorded a high of 44 degrees, while Dholpur and Jaipur recorded 43.2 and 41.4 degrees respectively. Other parts of the State recorded maximum temperatures between 37.5 to 41 degrees. Light rain occurred in Sriganganagar, Sadulshahar, Gharsana, Churu and nearby areas during the last 24 hours. — PTI