- By Imran Zafar
- Sat, 02 Mar 2024 09:03 AM (IST)
- Source:PTI
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Friday warned of a warmer summer and more heatwave in the country this year. The meteorological department stated that the harsh weather events are predicted due to the El Nino phenomenon which is likely to continue at least until May.
IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said at a press conference that India is likely to see above-normal maximum and minimum temperatures in most parts of the country in the March to May period. He also said that the country is likely to record above-normal rainfall in March (more than 117 per cent of the long-period average of 29.9 mm).
From March to May, the above-normal number of heatwave days is likely over most parts of the country except northeast India, the western Himalayan region, the southwest peninsula and the west coast, he said.
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More heatwave days than normal are predicted over northeast peninsular India, which includes Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and north interior Karnataka with many parts of Maharashtra and Odisha, he added. However, heatwave conditions are not expected over north and central India in March, he said.
The IMD Director General said the prevailing El Nino conditions, the periodic warming of waters in the central Pacific Ocean, will continue through the summer season and neutral conditions are likely to develop thereafter.
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La Nina conditions, which are generally associated with good monsoon rainfall in India are likely to set in by the second half of the monsoon season, he said.
The IMD chief also said that India recorded an average minimum temperature of 14.61 degrees Celsius in February, the second highest in the month since 1901. He said that a total of eight western disturbances, cyclonic storms originating in the Mediterranean region and beyond, affected the weather in western Himalayan states in February.
Of these, six were active western disturbances that led to rain and hailstorms over the plains in north and central India, he said.
(With PTI Inputs)
