BENGALURU: The IT city on Friday recorded 36.4 degrees Celsius, the highest maximum temperature for March in the past five years, as per Indian Meteorological Department. The temperature on Friday was the fourth highest in 15 years and the third highest in the past 10 years for March.
Met experts said global warming, along with El Nino effect (warming of the Pacific Ocean), is to blame for the punishing heat. "Due to El Nino's impact, Bengaluru has not received even the 14mm rainfall in March. The skies are clear, and we are looking at a very dry climate for now," said A Prasad, scientist at the IMD, Bengaluru.
Another officer from IMD said they are expecting temperatures to be 2-3 degrees above normal for the entire state and north-interior Karnataka has even been issued a heatwave warning with a yellow alert.
El Nino in decline: IMD scientist Residents from the districts of Kalaburgi, Bagalkot, Bidar, Vijayapura, Yadgir, Raichur and Koppal, where the temperature is 39-40 degrees Celsius, have been asked to stay indoors as much as possible or wear light-coloured clothes with head protection if they need to go outdoors.
The silver lining is that El Nino is in decline. "El Nino conditions are moderate and they will remain so for the next few weeks. However, we expect it to be neutral over the coming months," Prasad added.