‘Orange Alert’ sounded as temp shoots to 47oC in NCR, Palam

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. The IMD office said its Palam observatory, one of the 50 in the city, recorded 46.4 degrees on Wednesday. “The city had recorded its highest temperature at 47.2 degrees in 1994.” 

A MeT official said: “We advise people to take precautions against the heat wave in Delhi. We are still gathering the latest data. We have declared an Orange Alert.” The maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to hover around 44 and 28 degrees respectively, said an IMD official.

Wednesday’s minimum was 26.4 degrees, average for the season, while the humidity oscillated between 56 and 17 percent. The maximum on Tuesday was 43.3 degrees, three notches above the season’s average, while the minimum was 28.6 degrees Celsius, two notches above the season’s average. 

Meanwhile, 10 people were killed in landslides triggered by torrential rains in Assam on Wednesday. For TN, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry, a “very heavy rainfall” warning for the next two days was issued.