Heat wave conditions continue to sweep Odisha and Telangana with the mercury crossing the 45 degrees mark at some places. In odisha, Titilagarh continued to boil at 45.5 degrees Celsius emerging as the hottest place. Besides, 13 other places recorded temperature above 40 degrees.<br/><br/>Though the mercury level declined in the coastal belt including Bhubaneswar which recorded 40.2 degrees Celsius, the entire western region of the state was on the boil. The Met Department said, the breeze blowing from the sea lessened the temperature in the coastal belt. It also said the blistering heat wave condition might continue till the 21st of this month.<br/><br/>Telangana has been reeling under scorching heat wave for the last one week. Most places in the state including Hyderabad, Nizamabad, Nalgonda, are registering temperatures between 40 and 44 degrees. The Met office in Hyderabad stated that most places in the state will record high temperatures and cautioned people that heat wave will continue for some more days. Meanwhile, the ground water situation has reached an alarming stage in the state.<br/><br/>For the first time in the recent history, Telangana has been witnessing worse situation in terms of water levels which has plummeted to a 17-year low this year. The ground water levels fell by 2.68 meters when compared with that of last year. The officials of Ground Water departments stated that over 140 mandals in the state are facing water shortage with water levels plunging to more than 20 meters below ground level during the past six or seven months.<br/><br/>The officials fear that five mandals of Adilabad district which share their geological features with Latur in Maharashtra could be facing acute ground water crisis in the coming days. Meanwhile, the government has noticed the grim situation and initiated contingency measures on war-foot basis. It has already released nearly 102 crore rupees to meet drinking water requirements in the state.