BHOPAL
: This summer has to be the worst... If you found yourself muttering this in the summer of 2022 in
Madhya Pradesh
, you may not be too far off the mark. A study by the
Centre for Science and Environment
says that MP and
Rajasthan have been impacted the most by summer till April 24 this year.
Summer came early this year - and with a sizzle. MP has been reeling under extreme heat conditions since early March, and temperatures surpassed 42 degrees Celsius in the beginning of April in many parts, including Bhopal. The unrelenting heat surge started as early as March 11 in the state, with 25 heat-wave and 'severe heat wave' days each during this period, says the
CSE
report that has analysed
IMD data.
As per the Met department, a heat wave happens when the temperature crosses 40 degrees Celsius in plains or when a place registers a temperature 4.5-6.4 degrees Celsius higher than normal for the region on that day. If the temperature is higher than 6.4 degrees above normal, the IMD declares a 'severe' heat wave.
Heat waves impact availability of water The IMD also uses another criteria to declare a heat wave, which is based on absolute recorded temperatures. If the temperature crosses the 45 degrees mark, it's a heat wave, and if it crosses 47, a 'severe' heat wave.
Heat waves exert enormous impacts on health, agriculture and availability of water - all often related to each other in complex ways. According to the report, D Sivananda Pai of the Kottayam-based
Institute for Climate Change Studies
says that anticyclones over western parts of Rajasthan in March and the absence of rain-bearing Western disturbances had triggered the early and extreme heat waves. After an agonizing April, there's May to contend with.