Mercury soars as several districts record over 40° C

Delhi on Sunday recorded a high of 37.2 degrees Celsius, one notch above the normal for this time of the year, the IMD said. Weathermen said that the national capital could also record 40 degrees C next week.

The maximum temperatures have started rising with many districts in central and west India recording over 40 degrees Celsius, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday.

Deserted view of Vijay Chowk on day nineteen of the 21-day nationwide lockdown to check the spread of coronavirus, at Rajpath, in New Delhi, India, on Sunday, April 12, 2020. (Arvind Yadav/HT PHOTO)

Delhi on Sunday recorded a high of 37.2 degrees Celsius, one notch above the normal for this time of the year, the IMD said. Weathermen said that the national capital could also record 40 degrees C next week.

Heat wave conditions are likely to develop in Saurashtra and Kutch in Gujarat, according to the IMD’s Sunday bulletin.

Heat wave is also likely to develop over southwest Madhya Pradesh and northwest Vidarbha on April 14 and 15, the IMD said.

“Many places have started recording above normal temperatures now. This is mainly because there is no intense weather system or a western disturbance which brings rain. Maximum temperatures across the country are likely to rise even further next week,” said K Sathi Devi, head, national weather forecasting centre.

The IMD said maximum temperatures were above normal by 3.1 to 5 degrees C at a few places in Saurashtra, Kutch, Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura and Nagaland; by 1.6 to 3 degrees above normal over parts of Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, a few places of east Rajasthan, west Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, coastal Karnataka, Odisha, Goa and West Bengal.

Many towns and cities have started recording maximum temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius. According to the IMD, Ahmedabad recorded the maximum temperature at 42 degrees C, 3 degrees above normal, Bhuj at 42.5 degrees C, Gwalior at 40 degrees, 1.6 degrees above normal and Akola at 42 degrees C, 1.3 degrees above normal.

“There is an anti-cyclone (which causes calm weather) over Gujarat. The temperature hasn’t risen much over northwest India, because of western disturbances that are affecting the region. But central India, parts of Gujarat, Odisha, Telengana, which are in heat wave zone, have started recording higher temperatures. They have clear skies and less wind,” said RK Jenamani, senior scientist at national weather forecasting centre. Jenamani said that Delhi could also record 40 degrees C next week.