Heatwave alert issued for three days; air quality remains ‘poor’

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday issued a yellow alert for Gurugram from Wednesday to Friday, when the city is likely to experience heatwave.

A heatwave is declared if the maximum temperature is at least 40 degrees Celsius or more across the plains for two consecutive days with stations recording a maximum temperature that is 4.5 degrees or more above the normal.

According to the IMD’s seven-day forecast, the maximum temperature in Gurugram is likely to touch 45 degrees Celsius (°C) on Wednesday, and soar to 46°C on Friday. The city on Friday may also witness strong surface winds with a speed of 20-30 kilometre per hour (kmph) during the daytime.

The maximum temperatures are likely to drop on Saturday and Sunday, depending on a western disturbance advancing towards this region, said the IMD officials.

“Delhi-NCR (national capital region) is likely to witness a heatwave between Wednesday and Friday. A western disturbance is expected to advance through this region, which is unlikely to bring rain. However, it may lead to a marginal drop in daytime temperatures,” said an IMD official at the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) in Delhi — a regional centre of IMD — requesting anonymity.

Gurugram on Monday was among the warmest places in Delhi-NCR, with the maximum temperature recorded at 41.4°C — two degrees higher than normal, and the minimum temperature at 26.5°C — three degrees higher than normal.

The city on Sunday recorded the maximum and minimum temperatures at 43°C and 25.3°C.

Meanwhile, Gurugram on Monday recorded an air quality index (AQI) of 218 in the ‘poor’ category, according to the bulletin issued by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). This was slightly better than that on Sunday, when the city recorded an AQI of 253 — also in the ‘poor’ category.

An AQI reading between zero and 50 is considered “good”, 51 and 100 “satisfactory”, 101 and 200 “moderate”, 201 and 300 “poor”, 301 and 400 “very poor”, and 401 and 500 “severe”, according to the CPCB.

The weather bulletin issued by Air Quality Early Warning System (AQEWS) for Delhi showed on Monday that the air quality in NCR is likely to remain between the ‘moderate’ to ‘poor’ category for the next seven days.