A weather station in Delhi’s Mungeshpur has recorded a temperature of 52.9 degrees Celsius, the highest ever reported in India. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) is currently investigating the accuracy of this reading, as it significantly exceeds the temperatures recorded at other stations across the city.
IMD Director General M Mohapatra stated that there are 20 monitoring stations in Delhi, with 14 showing a drop in temperature and an average range of 45-50 degrees Celsius. Mungeshpur’s reading is an outlier, necessitating confirmation and a full investigation. A team of specialists has been dispatched to check the temperature sensor at the station.
Dr Mohapatra suggested that local factors around Mungeshpur might have contributed to the high reading. The IMD issued a statement indicating that the maximum temperature in Delhi NCR varied from 45.2 to 49.1 degrees Celsius, with Mungeshpur’s 52.9 degrees Celsius being an anomaly.
Earth Sciences Minister Kiren Rijiju emphasized that the 52.9-degree reading is not official yet and is being verified. He noted that such a high temperature in Delhi is highly unlikely, and the official position will be announced soon.
Kuldeep Srivastava, head of the IMD’s regional office, explained that Delhi’s outskirts, including Mungeshpur, Narela, and Najafgarh, are the first to be hit by hot winds from Rajasthan, exacerbating the heat.
On Wednesday evening, a brief rainfall in Delhi raised humidity levels. The Safdarjung observatory recorded a maximum temperature of 46.8 degrees Celsius, the highest in 79 years. The IMD has issued a red alert health notice for Delhi, warning of a high likelihood of heat illness and heat stroke.
India’s summer temperatures are becoming more severe due to climate change, with heatwaves becoming longer, more frequent, and more intense. Delhi reported an all-time high power demand of 8,302 megawatts (MW) as residents turned on air-conditioning.
In other regions, Rajasthan’s Phalodi recorded 51 degrees Celsius, and Haryana’s Sirsa reported 50.3 degrees Celsius. A temperature fall of up to 4 degrees Celsius in southern Rajasthan indicates the beginning of heatwave reduction over northwest India. Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) data suggests a gradual respite from the heatwave from May 30, with moist winds from the Bay of Bengal likely causing a fall in maximum temperatures over Uttar Pradesh.
Sources By Agencies
