Mumbai: For weeks, the city sweltered, with maximum temperatures hovering above 35 degrees Celsius. However, in a welcome change, there was a nip in the air on Tuesday, with maximum temperatures dropping to 32.8 degrees Celsius, almost one degree below normal. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), early setting in of sea breeze has led to a drop in temperatures.
KS Hosalikar, deputy director of the IMD said, “Due to early winds flowing in from the sea, there has been a decrease in maximum temperature. We cannot say for how long this weather will continue, as temperature may increase again in the coming days.” On Tuesday, the maximum temperatures recorded at Santacruz and Colaba were 32.8 and 32.4 degrees, one degree above normal respectively.
However, nights have been markedly cool, with the minimum temperature being 20 degrees Celsius. IMD officials said, temperatures continue to drop slowly in November, with the mean daily minimum at 20.5 degrees Celsius and the mean daily maximum around 32.4 degrees Celsius. “There was a three-degree drop in the maximum temperature on Tuesday, from 35+ degrees Celsius, which was being recorded for a month,” said an official.
Bishwambhar Singh, director-in-charge, IMD, said due to the northerly winds, there will be a further decrease in the minimum temperature later this month. “Minimum temperatures are known to dip gradually after the monsoon. South-easterly winds blowing towards Mumbai have caused the days to become hotter,” he explained. Relative humidity stood at 53 per cent in Santacruz on Tuesday, much lower than Colaba’s 84 per cent, an occurrence causing nights to become cooler.