After four days of sweating it out in heatwave conditions, Chandigarh residents can finally heave a sigh of relief as two Western Disturbances are round the corner and likely to bring rain to the city this week.
As a result, the day temperatures are set to drop from the 40-degree mark – where it has remained for the last four days – and slide to around 36°C by April 30.
According to India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) Chandigarh director Surender Paul, partly cloudy conditions may start from Monday evening itself, and rain is likely on Tuesday and Wednesday, with chances of it extending to Thursday. Initial forecasts also indicate rain at the beginning of May.
Despite the cloudy conditions, a yellow alert for heatwave will remain in place on Monday as the mercury is set to remain around 41°C. From Tuesday to Thursday, a yellow warning for thunderstorms and lightning, with gusty winds up to 50km/h, will be in place. Yellow is the second level of the four-colour warning system used by the IMD, which asks people to keep watch and stay updated.
Over the next week, the maximum temperature is expected to drop to 36°C by April 30.
{{/usCountry}}Over the next week, the maximum temperature is expected to drop to 36°C by April 30.
{{/usCountry}}On Sunday, the maximum temperature dropped slightly to 40.8°C, from Saturday’s 41°C.
The minimum temperatures also eased slightly, sliding from 23.2°C on Saturday to 22.4°C on Sunday, which is within the normal range.
Over the next three days, the maximum temperatures are likely to range between 37°C and 41°C, while the minimum may stay between 20°C and 22°C.
While usually the city sees maximum temperatures going up to 40°C only towards the end of April, this time, the temperatures started rising mid-month itself. Last year, the first instance of temperatures crossing 40°C was recorded on April 25 (40.5°C), and on April 26 (40.2°C) in 2024. This year mirrors 2023, when the 40°C mark was reached early, on April 18.