Amidst the scorching blaze, Delhi braces itself for yet another day of relentless heat on May 30th, following a staggering record-breaking temperature surge of 52.9 degrees Celsius in the Mungeshpur precinct, the highest ever documented within the national capital’s annals.
While Minister Kiren Rijiju voiced skepticism, suggesting a probable discrepancy in the sensor apparatus, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) endeavors to scrutinize the anomaly. Nevertheless, the past fortnight has witnessed North-West Indian states and Union Territories grappling with temperatures consistently surpassing the 45-degree Celsius threshold, unequivocally marking the advent of a severe heatwave spell.
The historical pinnacle of thermal torment in India dates back to 2016, when Phalodi, nestled on the periphery of Rajasthan’s arid Thar Desert, registered a sweltering 51 degrees Celsius in the month of May.
Elevated mercury readings exceeding the formidable 50-degree Celsius milestone predominantly characterize the climatic narrative in the western expanses, notably Rajasthan and fragments of Gujarat. Over the preceding seven days, Delhi has persistently clocked temperatures above 44 degrees Celsius, a saga that extends to the past fortnight with mercury levels consistently eclipsing the 40-degree Celsius mark.
Anticipations for May 30th indicate a zenith of 45 degrees Celsius for Delhi’s mercury readings, with the nocturnal respite settling at a relatively milder 30 degrees Celsius. As per the IMD’s dawn communiqué, sweltering to severe heatwave conditions are forecasted to endure across swathes of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, and Western Rajasthan on May 30th, with a gradual amelioration expected thereafter, albeit with sporadic pockets retaining heatwave characteristics until June 1st.
The bulletin further delineates a gradual abatement of heatwave intensity across Northwestern and Central India commencing May 30th. Correspondingly, intermittent pockets within Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha are poised to grapple with the scorching onslaught on the same day. Concurrently, the climatic backdrop primes the stage for the imminent onset of monsoon showers over Kerala and the Northeastern states.
