Several parts of Gujarat, Maharashtra record heatwaves, mercury likely to soar in Mumbai

Several parts of the country witnessed heatwaves in the past two days, with severe conditions recorded in the Saurashtra-Kutch region of Gujarat and the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.

The India Meteorological Department also predicted a heatwave in Mumbai and its neighbouring districts of Thane, Palghar and Raigad on Friday and Saturday, The Indian Express reported. Heatwave conditions were also reported from isolated parts of the Vidarbha region in Maharashtra.

In many parts of North India, daytime temperatures were above normal by more than 5.1 degrees Celsius, the Hindustan Times reported.

The weather agency declares a heatwave for a region when the temperature crosses 40 degrees Celsius in the plains, 37 degrees Celsius in coastal areas and 30 degrees Celsius in the hills.

Gujarat

Severe heatwave conditions prevailed in some pockets of Gujarat, including parts of Ahmedabad, Dessa, Surat and Anand, the IMD said. Some pockets in the Saurashtra-Kutch region, including Porbandar, Rajkot, Gir Somnath, Surendranagar, Bhavnagar and Kutch, also reported severe heatwaves in the 24 hours ending at 8.30 am on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Rajkot recorded a maximum temperature of 41.9 degrees Celsius, the highest in Gujarat for the day, The Indian Express reported.

Ahmedabad, however, saw some relief on Thursday, with the mercury dropping to 38.9 degrees Celsius from 41.4 degrees Celsius on the previous day, The Times of India reported. The maximum temperature on Thursday, however, was still 3.8 degrees above normal.

Maharashtra

The IMD said...

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