The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a heatwave alert for the Konkan and Kutch regions on Monday, making it the season’s first alert. Earlier in the day, a heatwave warning was also sounded in Maharashtra's Raigad, Ratnagiri and Mumbai suburban regions.

Moreover, the Met Department predicted above-normal temperature in Gujarat, Jammu, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, in next two days.

The IMD warning comes a bit early as a heatwave alert in India usually begins in the March. "The maximum temperatures are in the range of 36-38°C over parts of Rajasthan and Konkan Region. They are markedly above normal at most places over Gujarat and Rajasthan; at many places over western Himalayan region," the IMD said in a press release on Monday.

Winter is still on its way out, but such heatwave alerts indicate that India could skip the spring season altogether and directly enter into the summers, News 18 reported.

Committee to monitor impact of rise in temp on wheat crop

Amid the rising temperature in various India states, the government said it has set up a committee to monitor the impact of rise in temperature on the wheat crop in April. The committee will issue advisories to farmers on adopting micro irrigation, Agriculture Secretary Manoj Ahuja was quoted by PTI as saying.

The committee will be headed by the Agriculture Commissioner and will have members from Karnal-based Wheat Research Institute and representatives from major wheat growing states, he added.. The Secretary, however, said there won't be an impact of rise in temperature on early-sown varieties and even heat resistant varieties have been sown in large areas this time.

The National Crop Forecast Centre (NCFC) had earlier warned that the maximum temperature in major wheat producing areas barring Madhya Pradesh was higher-than-average of the last seven years during the first week of February.

Wheat production is estimated to hit a record at 112.18 million tonnes in the 2022-23 crop year (July-June). Wheat production had declined marginally to 107.74 million tonnes in the previous year, due to heat wave conditions in some states, PTI reported.

Temperature in Delhi

On Monday, Delhiites woke up to a humid morning with the minimum temperature settling at 13.1 degrees Celsius, two notches above the season’s average and relative humidity at 8.30 am recorded at 91 percent.

The weatherman has forecast partly cloudy sky for the day with the maximum temperature likely to hover around 32 degrees Celsius. Delhi’s air quality, meanwhile, stood in the ‘very poor’ category as the air quality index (AQI) read 343.

Temperature in Himachal Pradesh

Meanwhile, Himachal towns reported record high temperatures. According to reports, some towns in the state recorded temperatures 5-10°C higher than what is normal for this time of the year. At 14.4 degrees Celsius, Shimla, recorded the highest-ever minimum temperature on Saturday.

The mercury is rising in other parts of the state as well and there has been less precipitation or winter rain this year, resulting in a rise in daytime temperatures.

Surender Paul, IMD Himachal Pradesh, was quoted by News 18 as saying: "There was less western disturbance this year and it was particularly weak at higher altitudes, resulting in deficient precipitation and an increase in temperatures in the state. There are many other reasons for the rising temperatures, one of which could be the change in the local weather patterns and changing climatic conditions."

Temperature in Gujarat

The condition is particularly intense over Gujarat, Saurashtra and Kutch, the weather department- said, adding that in many, places maximum temperatures are over 8 degrees above normal.

First Published:Feb 20, 2023 1:55 PM IST