Authorities in New Delhi shut schools, halted construction and banned nonessential trucks from entering the city after air pollution shot up to its worst level this season.
Temperatures passed 50 degrees Celsius in northern India as an unrelenting heatwave triggered warnings of water shortages and heatstroke.
Air quality index at 12 times US government-recommended level and visibility low
Some 600 million Indians, about half the population, face high to extreme water scarcity conditions, with about 200,000 dying every year from inadequate access to safe water, says a government report.
