The national capital of India saw its highest temperature of 47.4 degrees Celsius on Monday amid record highs around the region. With the expectation that the heatwave to severe heatwave conditions will continue for the next five days, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a severe heatwave red alert for Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, and Chandigarh.
In certain areas of Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Gujarat, Saurashtra, and Kutch, heatwave conditions are also predicted for May 23.
However, the IMD has issued a “red alert” for Tuesday and Wednesday pertaining to exceptionally high rainfall in three districts of Kerala (Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, and Idukki) in southern India. The state government announced on Monday that emergency activities are underway in all districts owing to the threat of landslides and epidemics, despite continued rainfall in various sections of the state.
Furthermore, the weather service issued a “orange alert,” stating that isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall (115.5–204.5 mm) is very likely to occur in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Karaikal on Tuesday.
The national capital’s peak power consumption for May reached an all-time high on Monday due to a heatwave in some areas of Delhi, as reported by news agencies citing power distribution company authorities.
The Delhi government ordered government-aided and private schools that hadn’t started summer break yet to do so right away due to the warmth. In a circular, the Directorate of Education mandated that, for this academic year, all schools start their summer holiday on May 11 and end on June 30.
The Himachal Pradesh State Education Department has made the decision to modify the schedule of classes 1 through 12 in response to a heatwave alert that was issued for many regions. Owing to the intense heat, a notice has been published modifying the school day from 7.30 am to 1 pm. Based on their unique circumstances, local authorities are able to make decisions.
All employees, including teachers, have been put on alert and told to make sure that pupils have access to enough water and to two breaks each day. According to the meteorological centre in Shimla, the heatwave is expected to persist in isolated pockets within the districts of Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Solan, Sirmaur, Kangra, and Shimla for the next four to five days.
According to news agency, which cited police sources, a heatwave in Kota, Rajasthan, claimed the life of a guy from Uttar Pradesh. Mahendra Kushwah, 44, a resident of Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, was found dead on Sunday night next to a hotel in Dadwada, Kota. Kushwah looked to have passed away on Sunday due to the warmth, according to the police.
The Jaipur Meteorological Centre said that Pilani, in the Jhunjhunu district, was the hottest place in the state with a maximum temperature of 46.6 degrees Celsius, indicating that the extreme heat was still present throughout Rajasthan.
According to an official, Monday was the warmest day of the season in Jammu, with a high temperature of 42.2 degrees Celsius. Authorities changed school hours to relieve the “extremely hot weather conditions” and help children.
According to news agency, a spokesperson from the met office noted that the maximum temperature in Jammu and Kashmir’s winter capital was 3.9 degrees above the seasonal average.
The Directorate of School Education in Jammu ordered a change in school timings for the division’s summer zones due to the extreme heat. Starting Monday, all government and private (recognized) schools up to the higher secondary level will now operate from 8 am to noon.
Due to the extreme weather, the Gautam Buddh Nagar district government declared on Monday that all students in grades 9 through 12 will have summer holidays at all of the Noida and Greater Noida schools.
In the district, summer breaks for kids in grades up to eight had already been announced. Gautam Buddh Nagar had a high temperature of 45.6 degrees Celsius on Monday, according to the IMD, which also forecasted that the heatwave will last for the following four days.
