NEW DELHI: A severe heatwave is expected to cover parts of northern India, including Punjab and Delhi, from May 18-20, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said in its latest forecast.
“Severe heatwave conditions are very likely in some parts of west Rajasthan during May 17-20 and in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi during May 18-20,” the IMD has said. The mercury could soar to 45 degrees Celsius in the national capital by Saturday.
With temperatures expecting to cross the 40-degree-Celsius mark, from Friday to Monday, parts of Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, and West Rajasthan are expected to see “severe heatwave conditions”, the Met department has stated. While the existing heatwave alert in Jharkhand and Odisha will continue till Monday, the weather will see a slight improvement post Sunday in West Bengal and Bihar.
On Thursday, Rajasthan recorded the highest temperatures as the mercury in places touched 46 degree Celsius. Similar weather prevailed in many parts of Haryana, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh where the temperatures were 2-3 degrees above normal, reported IMD.
According to IMD’s data, heatwave days in April were the highest in 15 years in Gangetic West Bengal and nine years in Odisha.
Heatwaves are not defined by high temperatures but by abnormalities in temperature. A place that normally sees a temperature of 40 degree Celsius during summer is not said to be experiencing a heatwave even if the temperature rises to 42 or 43 degrees. On the other hand, another location would be said to be facing a heatwave even at 35 degrees if its normal temperature during that time is 27 or 28 degrees.
Approaching monsoon and rainfall
For the southern part of India, the IMD has predicted rainfall and thunderstorm for certain regions as the southwest monsoon is expected to move into the south Andaman Sea, parts of Bay of Bengal and the Nicobar Islands around Sunday.
Over the coming week, rainfall with thunderstorms have been predicted for Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala, south Karnataka, and coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. While the IMD has issued a “very heavy rainfall” alert for Tamil Nadu and Kerala till Monday, the other states are likely to see moderate showers over these days.
Isolated light rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms is expected in parts of Maharashtra and Goa on Friday and Saturday.
In addition to the humidity in the northeast, the states are also likely to see moderate to heavy rainfall over the next week. IMD forecast predicts light to moderate rain for West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur Mizoram, and Tripura. However, the rain is likely to get heavier in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya and Sikkim over Sunday and Monday.
PTI