Scorching summer pushes temperatures to record levels

NEW DELHI: Severe heat wave conditions were observed in parts of the national capital on Thursday. The mercury settled at 46 degrees Celsius at Yamuna Sports Complex — highest in the country with Hisar. Besides, Safdarjung, the base station for Delhi, also recorded the highest of the season — 43.5 degrees C. This was the second-highest recorded in this station in 12 years. The previous highest was 43.7 in April 2010.

Temperature breached the 45 degrees C mark at some stations and remained around 43-44 at most others. In Gurugram, a maximum temperature of 45.6 was recorded, while it was 45.4 at Najafgarh and 45.2 at Pitampura. Delhi Ridge saw a maximum of 45.1 degrees C.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) declares it a heat wave when the maximum temperature is 4.5 to 6.4 degrees above the normal, and is 40 degrees or above. It may also be recorded when the maximum temperature is 45 degrees C or above.The ongoing heat wave spell is the third one that the national capital region is reeling under this summer. Heat wave conditions are likely to remain till May 2, for which the IMD had issued a yellow alert on Wednesday. So far, Delhi has recorded nine heat wave days this April, the highest since 2010 when the figure was 10.

R K Jenamani, senior IMD scientist, said the whole of northwest and central India is facing a heat wave, which is likely to stay till May 2. “Safdarjung may record a total of around 10 or 11 heat wave days this month,” he said. “The dry spell of around 65 days, not just in Delhi but also in the surrounding areas, along with westerly winds have kept temperatures high.”