Mercury continued to soar across the country today. India Meteorological Department (IMD) said its weather stations at 25 places across the country recorded mercury over 40 degree Celsius. In Telengana, where several people have died due to heatwave, the highest maximum temperature of 44 degrees Celsius in the state was recorded in Nizamabad district.<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/>Maximum temperature in Delhi settled at 42.2 degrees Celsius, four notches above normal. Heatwave conditions prevailed in West and East Madhya Pradesh, Vidharbha region of Maharashtra, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Gangetic West Bengal, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, East and West Rajasthan, Telangana, Rayalseema region of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.