Summer max temp may be above normal: IMD

Pune: There is around 44 per cent probability of the maximum temperature to rise above normal in the core heatwave zone during April to June 2019. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasted this in the ‘Seasonal Outlook for the Temperatures during April to June 2019’, which was issued on Monday.

The weather department stated that current observations suggest that weak El Niño conditions are prevailing over the equatorial Pacific Ocean. 

Above normal heatwaves
The met department stated that the probability of the heatwave this summer season is above normal in the heatwave zone. The core heatwave zone includes states of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Telangana. It also covers the meteorological subdivisions of Marathwada, Vidarbha, central Maharashtra and coastal Andhra Pradesh. 

Warmer days ahead
The season average maximum temperatures, is likely to be warmer than normal. The increase will be 0.5 degrees to one degrees Celsius above normal. 

According to the IMD, this rise in temperature is expected to be over Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Gujarat, Madhya Maharashtra, Vidarbha, Marathwada, coastal Karnataka, north interior of Karnataka, Rayalaseema and Telangana. Other meteorological subdivisions from the rest of the country are likely to experience near normal maximum temperatures. 

Speaking to Sakal Times, AK Srivastava, Head of Climate Research Division at IMD Pune, said that the forecast suggests the probability of warmer days is more.

“The forecasts clearly outlines that the number of warmer days in this season will be more as compared to normal temperature. The temperature may rise four to five degrees Celsius above normal but that can be forecast only four to five days in advance,” said Srivastava.