40 days of 40°C & above in Ahmedabad as heatwave sweeps Gujarat

AHMEDABAD: The summer of 2022 might well be on its way to be one of the cruellest in recent times as the mercury has not dipped below 40 degrees for 22 days now. If one counts from the start of April, in the past 40 days, there has been only one day when the temperature went below the 40 mark at a close 39.8 degrees Celsius on April 20.
Major cities of Gujarat continued to reel under severe heat on Thursday as well. In fact, 10 of the state weather stations recorded temperatures above 43 degrees Celsius. While Surendranagar was the hottest at 46 degrees, Ahmedabad burnt at 45.4 degrees, the second continuous day of 45 degrees plus temperature for the city. State capital Gandhinagar recorded 44.9 degrees, Amreli 44.6, Rajkot 44.3, Vadodara 41.8 and Surat 33.6.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast, Friday would also record a maximum temperature around 45 degrees.
On Wednesday, Ahmedabad had recorded 45.8 degrees Celsius maximum temperature, which was the highest in the past six years and the second hottest in at least past decade – eclipsed only by 48 degrees Celsius recorded on May 20, 2016.
Manorama Mohanty, the head of the IMD Gujarat, said that the westerly to north westerly winds are primary reasons for the spike in the temperature in several regions of Gujarat. “There have been several heat waves this season for Gujarat – but what’s more important is, the temperature has not gone below 40 degrees in cities like Ahmedabad for a very long time. In the past 40 days, there has only been one day of below 40 degrees, which has health implications,” she said.
She added that the state can expect some respite from Saturday onwards when the temperatures are likely to drop by 2-3 degrees.
Prof Dileep Mavalankar, director of Indian Institute of Public Health, Gandhinagar (IIPH-G), said that the prolonged heat can cause an impact on both the indoors and outdoors population.
“We often only see the impact of heat stroke on those who are outside. But even indoors, if there's persistent heat for a long time, it has adverse effects such as blood pressure fluctuation and increased heart rate. Thus, one must employ methods to ensure that the elderly and children are safe from intense heat,” he said, adding that use of lime on roof, putting wet towels on head and keeping legs in water are some of the traditional methods employed by the large population in India.