It's been weeks now since several parts of India have been reeling under the excruciating and sweltering heatwave sweeping across the states. April this year has bought with it an unprecedented summer that has exposed millions of people to these dreadful climate, making outdoor work extremely difficult.
Record breaking temperatures above 105 degrees F (40 degrees C) have immensely impacted the entire nation with some estimates dubbing it as the hottest summer in nearly 122 years. So far, the India Meteorological department has already issued heat wave warning for at least five states as India witnesses its "hottest summer ever".
"Heat wave conditions over Northwest & Central India during next 5 days and over East India during next 3 days and abate thereafter. Rain/Thunderstorm accompanied with lightning/gusty winds likely to continue over Northeast India", IMD said.
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Large parts of the country have been dealing with temperatures around 45 degrees Celsius in April while the average temperature in India in March 2022 was about 92 degrees F (33 degrees C), the warmest March ever recorded since records began in 1902.
What is causing the heatwave?
Residents and meteorologists have reported that even though heatwaves are quite common in this region, 2022 saw the earliest onset of the heatwave weather which began from late March and now has stretched into the month of April.
According to Raghu Murtugudde, a climate scientist at the University of Maryland, "The pressure pattern associated with La Niña conditions, which are currently presiding over the Pacific, has persisted longer than expected. This, along with warm waves coming from the Arctic, has caused heat waves to form."
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The current impact of La Niña on the spring and summer seasons in India is completely unexpected, Murtugudde was quoted by CNN as saying.
Moreover, the severity of the heat waves can also be explained through the prism of climate change as Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), The United Nations's climate authority stated in it's recent report that India's name exists in the list of the countries expected to be worst affected by the impacts of the climate crisis.
The latest state of the science report from the IPCC in August 2021 has noted with conviction that hot extremes have increased in South Asia, and that those exacerbating attributes of climate change including extreme temperatures are attributable to the anthropognic resons.
What are the predictions?
"More intense heat waves of longer durations and occurring at a higher frequency are projected over India," predicted the IPCC report.
With no relief in sight, meteorologists and climate experts are anticipating further aggravation of the current heatwave pattern which might make it one of the longest-lasting heatwave weathers in recent decades.
"The future of heat waves is looking worse even with significant mitigation of climate change, and much worse without mitigation," Elfatih Eltahir, a professor of hydrology and climate at MIT, told CNN.
How the affected states have been dealing with the heatwaves?
IMD has already issued an heat wave warning for Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, UP and Odisha as parts of these states record temperatures above 45 degrees Celsius. According to them, the severe conditions are likely to persist till the first week of May after which chances of rain increase.
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Mercury in the states of central and northern India are still following an upward trend with Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh crossing 45 degrees Celcius mark.
For Delhi, the weather office predicted continuation of heatwave during the day with the maximum temperature likely to touch 43 degrees Celsius. The weather office has predicted the temperature in the national capital to touch 44 degrees Celsius by Friday while the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir recorded its hottest day of the season as temperature reaches 40 degrees Celsius.
In a bid to cope with severity of the prevailing situation, West Bengal has announced early summer holidays for educational institutions.Summer holidays are to begin from May 2.
