A yellow alert has been sounded in Delhi by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) as it forecasted a heatwave in the city till Wednesday.
In its April to June seasonal outlook, the Met Office earlier forecasted rain deficit for the city. The number of heatwave days between April and June is also likely to be higher than usual, it said.
Depending on the severity of weather conditions, the IMD uses four colour-coded warnings: green, yellow, orange, and red. When a yellow alert is sounded, heat is tolerable for the general public, as per officials, but it can trigger moderate health concerns for vulnerable people — infants, elderly, and people with chronic diseases. Avoid heat exposure; wear lightweight, light-coloured, loose, cotton clothes; cover your head, use a cloth, hat or umbrella — these are among the IMD’s guidelines for yellow alert.
A majority of the northern plains, including those in Rajasthan, Haryana Chandigarh, and Punjab, are expected to reel under a heatwave for the next four to five days, as per Sunday’s forecast.
For it to be called a heatwave day in plains, at least two stations — for two days in a row — should record maximum temperature at or above 40 degrees Celsius with a departure of 4.5 to 6.4 degrees Celsius from normal.
For the past few days, parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan reported heatwave conditions and above-normal temperatures prevailed in most of the northern plains including Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, and Uttar Pradesh.
The maximum on Sunday at Safdarjung Observatory, which provides representative data for Delhi, was 38.2 degrees Celsius. This is around three notches above normal. The minimum temperature settled at 18.5 degrees Celsius, around two notches below normal.
Story continues below this ad
The highest maximum temperature in northwest India was recorded at 43.6 degrees Celsius in Rajasthan’s Barmer on Sunday.
In Delhi, the maximum temperature is likely to be in the range of 40 to 42 degrees Celsius till Tuesday. On Wednesday, the day’s high is likely to settle between 39 to 41 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperature is expected to see a gradual increase and range between 20 and 24 degrees Celsius.
The season’s normal is in the range of 20 to 31.5 degrees Celsius till Friday.
“A fresh western disturbance is likely to affect the Western Himalayan region from April 8,” read the latest weather bulletin. It also said that mainly clear sky with west-northwesterly winds with speeds gusting up to 18 Kmph prevailed during the past 24 hours.
Story continues below this ad
“The maximum temperature had no large change over the Northwest India — appreciably above normal in Uttarakhand, Haryana, east UP, and east Rajasthan and normal over the rest of Northwest India,” the Met Office said.
In its seven-day forecast, it said, “Rise in maximum temperatures by 2 to 4 degrees Celsius during the next four days and fall by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius, thereafter over many parts of northwest India.”