Summer arrives early, IMD forecasts intense heat this year
© Provided by Hindustan Times
Summer seems to
The early onset of summer also means a higher probability of heat waves developing earlier than expected, IMD said. On Wednesday, the agency issued a heat wave warning for Mumbai, Raigad and Ratnagiri for Wednesday and Thursday.
Heat waves don’t just impact human health; they also affect crops, deplete water resources and put pressure on the power system because of the spike in demand for cooling. The above-average temperatures could affect winter crops, including staple wheat, in the absence of precautionary measures, experts warned. “Wheat is susceptible to a condition called terminal heat if, during maturing and harvesting stage, temperatures rise abnormally,” said Dr R Nagesh, a retired scientist from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute.
“There is a danger of productivity losses.”
A sustained heat wave is
The National Disaster Management Authority describes a heat wave as a period of abnormally high temperature. IMF’s own
Heat waves normally occur between March and June, although some have been recorded even later.
In Delhi, heat wave conditions normally develop
“It is likely that heat wave conditions will hit the region earlier than expected,” he added.
The core heat wave zone spreads over Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Telangana and the meteorological subdivisions of Marathwada, Vidarbha, and Madhya Maharashtra in Maharashtra and coastal Andhra Pradesh in Andhra.
This summer too will be hotter, IMD said, with mean temperatures between March and May being 1 degree Celsius above normal.
A draft IMD report noted that 2017 was India’s 4th hottest year, and the 4th consecutive record-breaking year, mostly because of record-breaking temperatures in the January- February period, classified as winter.
Officials in Mumbai cited unique conditions for
There is an increase in the frequency and duration of heat waves according to IMD officials. The rise in average temperatures that is fuelling the heat waves is attributed to increasing greenhouse gas emissions and warming of sea surface temperatures.
The National Disaster Management Authority reported recently that heat wave deaths have dropped significantly in recent years partly because of early warnings.
However, experts say the cost of heat waves go beyond fatalities and include health care costs and the loss of productivity.
“When people are exposed to very high temperatures, they start developing a temperature and the body’s heat-regulation mechanism and circulation fails; people can die if they are not cooled down immediately,” said Dr Dileep Mavalankar, director of Indian Institute of Public Health, Gandhinagar-Public Health Foundation of India.
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It isn’t just Mumbai and the North, Hyderabad has seen an increase of 3-4 degrees C from normal
Responding to the IMD forecast, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee held an emergency meeting with the ministers and officials of the agriculture and irrigation department.