New Delhi: Offering respite from heat, Delhi and parts of Uttar Pradesh on Friday received a sudden downpour.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) had told ANI that thunderstorm with light to moderate rain would occur over adjoining and isolated parts of South, East, South East Delhi, Noida, Faridabad and adjoining areas.
On Thursday, Delhi recorded a maximum temperature of 43.1°C, the highest in July since 2012, with the IMD saying there is “no chance” of monsoon reaching the city till July 7. After that, the region will witness below-normal rainfall till the middle of this month. The last time monsoon arrived so late in Delhi was in 2012. Normally, monsoon reaches Delhi by June 27 and covers the entire country by July 8.
The spells of rainfall comes as parts of North India were reeling under severe heat wave conditions.
Due to dry westerly or southwesterly winds from Pakistan to northwest India at lower levels, heat wave conditions in some pockets over the northern plains, including Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi, north Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and northwest Madhya Pradesh, are likely during the next two days, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had said.
It said heat wave to severe heat wave conditions were observed in isolated places over Jammu on Wednesday. Severe heat wave conditions were observed at isolated places over northeast Rajasthan as well, it said.
The IMD further said the heat wave conditions are likely to decrease in intensity and area coverage due to the expected southwesterly winds from the Arabian Sea.
“However, due to an increase in the humidity in association with these winds, the human discomfort will continue during the next seven days,” IMD director general Mrutyunjay Mohapatra told PTI.
For the plains, a “heatwave” is declared when the maximum temperature is more than 40°C, and at least 4.5 notches above normal.
A “severe” heatwave is declared if the departure from normal temperature is more than 6.5°C, according to the IMD.
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Peak power demand
According to NDTV, Punjab’s peak power demand touched a whopping 14,500 megawatt (MW) so far. Due to extreme heat amid power shortage, chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh has ordered to cut short work hours in state government offices from Friday till July 10.
He also said that the agriculture sector needed to be prioritised for uninterrupted power supply, as farmers were losing paddy transplantation time due to power breakdowns.
According to Hindustan Times, Delhi’s peak power demand on Thursday crossed the 7,000MW mark – the highest in the last two years. Officials in the power department told the daily that the demand may further go up to 7,400 MW, if the ongoing heatwave in the city continues.
According to an analysis by Centre for Science and Environment, 33.6% of Delhi’s total power needs come from coal-based thermal power plants that do not meet emission norms under the Environment Protection Act, 1986, DownToEarth had reported last year.
Overall, of India’s installed power generation capacity of 382.15 gigawatt (GW), the coal fuelled projects account for 53% or 202.67 GW.
(With inputs from PTI)