“The effects of the cyclone off Andhra Pradesh coast, due to a deep depression in west-central and southwest Bay of Bengal, will be felt in the state this week,” the Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) said.
“Thundershowers are likely to occur over parts of Gangetic Bengal including places such as Bankura, South and North 24-Parganas,” a MeT official said.
Thunder squalls (wind speed between 50 to 60 km/hour) are very likely to occur at isolated places over Gangetic West Bengal and Odisha during the next 48 hours, according to an official bulletin by the regional MeT office.
The Indian Meteorological Department has said the depression over southwest Bay of Bengal moved north-northeastward at a speed of 10 kmph during the past six hours, intensified into a deep depression and lay centred over west-central and adjoining southwest Bay of Bengal on Wednesday morning, about 170 km south-southeast of Nellore.
Meanwhile, the mercury touched a scorching 47 degrees Celsius in Noida and Palam and other NCR areas too recorded high temperatures on Wednesday, with the MeT office declaring an “Orange Alert” in the national Capital. Warnings were also issued asking people to take precautions against the intense heat wave.
The mercury touched 46.4 degrees in certain areas in the national Capital while the maximum temperature elsewhere settled at 43.7 degrees, three notches above the season’s average, said the weather office. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast a rise in temperature on Thursday as well, a mainly clear sky and very likely dust haze towards morning and evening.
“The temperature may rise in the coming days,” it said. According to private weather forecasters, temperature in Palam and Noida soared to 47 degrees on Wednesday, mostly attributable to dry north-western winds.
“In Palam area, the temperature reached 47 degrees,” private weather forecaster Skymet’s director Mahesh Palawat said.
Meanwhile, 10 people were killed in landslides triggered by torrential rains in Assam on Wednesday. For Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry, the MeT department issued a “very heavy rainfall” warning for the next two days.
Palodhi in Rajasthan recorded the highest in the country on Wednesday and the highest in the state this season at 50.5 degrees, followed by Churu at 49.1, Jaisalmer at 48.8 and Barmer at 48.6 degrees. Odisha reported another sunstroke death, taking the toll to 19. Sonepur was the hottest place in the state at 41.4 degrees.
In Arunachal Pradesh, flood waters of the overflowing Noa-Dehing river, fed by torrential rain in the past few days, have inundated several areas in Namsai district.