Delhi Hottest in 12 Yrs, Gurugram Sizzles at 45 Deg C; Orange Alert for 3 States | Key Points

Delhi is reeling under a blazing heatwave with the national capital recording a maximum temperature of 43.5 degrees Celsius – the highest in April in as many as 12 years. It was on April 29, 1941, when Delhi recorded an all-time high temperature of 45.6 degrees.

The blistering heat prompted the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government on Thursday to announce a steady supply of around 1,000 million gallons of drinking water every day during the peak summer season (April-July). The Delhi Jal Board shared its Summer Action Plan and said that a total of 1,198 water tankers enabled with GPS for transparency will be deployed across the national capital to stave off water crisis.

Meanwhile, Gurugram was the hottest city in Haryana, sizzling at a temperature of 45.6 degrees Celsius.

A look at the key updates on the heatwave sweeping north India and other parts of the country:

1. The mercury surged to 46 degrees Celsius at Delhi’s Sports Complex, making it the hottest place in the national capital, followed by Ridge (45.1 degrees Celsius), Mungeshpur (45.8 degrees Celsius), Najafgarh (45.4 degrees Celsius) and Pitampura (45.2 degrees Celsius).
2. Delhi recorded nine heatwave days in April, the highest since 11 such days were witnessed in the month in 2010.
3. Delhi may, however, also see a partly cloudy sky, light rain and a dust storm with winds gusting up to 50 kilometres per hour on Friday and Sunday, which may provide temporary respite.
4. In Haryana, Gurugram was the hottest, while Hisar recorded a high temperature of 44.5 degrees Celsius, Bhiwani 43.6 degrees Celsius, Narnaul 44.4 degrees Celsius, Rohtak 44 degrees Celsius, Ambala 42.8 degrees Celsius and Karnal 42.7 degrees Celsius. Chandigarh recorded a maximum temperature of 42.2 degrees Celsius.
5. IMD also predicted that the blistering heatwave sweeping vast swathes of the country will intensify in the next five days.
6. The MeT further issued an ‘orange’ alert for Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and parts of Maharashtra, and predicted a rise of another two degrees Celsius in the northwest region.
7. Large parts of India have been recording higher than normal temperatures since the last week of March, with weather experts attributing it to the absence of periodic light rainfall and thundershowers.
8. Northwest India saw at least four western disturbances in March and April, but they were not strong enough to cause a significant change in weather, said Mahesh Palawat, Vice President (Meteorology and Climate Change), Skymet, a private weather forecasting agency.
9. Vidarbha in Maharashtra and west Rajasthan have consistently reported maximum temperatures in the range of 40 degrees Celsius to 45 degrees Celsius for the past two months. India saw its warmest March since the IMD began keeping records 122 years ago amid a 71 per cent rain deficit.
10. Health experts, meanwhile, flagged medical issues like heat syncope, cramps, fatigue and heat strokes with the rising mercury levels. Dileep Mavalankar, Director, Indian Institute of Public Health Gandhinagar, suggested that people need to watch out for IMD advisories, stay indoors, keep themselves hydrated and rush to the nearest health centres if they feel moderate signs of heat-related illness.

(With PTI inputs)

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