Heat wave hits Himachal in March, experts worried

Kullu: Heat waves struck Himachal Pradesh quite early this year, raising concerns among common people and environmentalists alike. According to the Meteorological Centre, Shimla, the mountain state recorded a heat wave on March 6, which was the earliest in at least the last 5 years. The maximum temperature soared above the 30-degree mark in 9 out of the 36 weather stations on March 6, prompting the weather department to issue a heat wave alert in the state. The maximum temperatures continued to hover 2 to 8 degrees above normal in the following days, and on March 9, Una hit the highest maximum temperature of 35 degrees Celsius, a record so far this month.There was also an unprecedented rise in the minimum temperatures, which were recorded 2 to 8 degrees above normal across the state. The Met declares a heat wave in the plain areas when the maximum temperature goes 4.5 degrees above normal and remains over 40 degrees Celsius for at least 2 consecutive days. In the hilly areas, a heat wave alert is sounded when the maximum temperature remains above 30 degrees Celsius for 2 straight days, and the departure from normal is at least 4.5 degrees. A severe heat wave is announced when the temperature goes 6.5 degrees above normal. In the first fortnight of March so far, the Met issued a yellow alert for heat wave to severe heat wave on 7 days: March 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, and 14.Compared to this year, heat waves hit Himachal on April 6 in 2025, May 19 in 2024, and March 16 in 2022. No heat wave was recorded in 2023 due to frequent rainfall activity in March, April, May, and June, and up to July, when a devastating flood in the Beas river hit Kullu.According to Met Shimla director Shobhit Katiyar, the unusually high temperatures in the first 2 weeks of March were due to 2 prominent reasons."Two factors ran simultaneously — anti-cyclonic circulation, a large-scale high-pressure atmospheric motion that causes dry weather, and advection, or the inflow of warm winds from the Pakistan side — shot up the mercury in the north-western states, including Himachal Pradesh. Also, the absence of a balancing factor like Western Disturbance activity in the first weeks of March further caused the temperatures to rise," said Katiyar. But is it just an erratic weather phenomenon or an indicator of climate change?"This rise in temperatures is not highly unusual. We saw high temperatures for more than a week, but it rained yesterday and the weather is becoming normal again. If this pattern of early heat waves continues for a longer period of time, say 10 years, only then should we be able to conclude that it may be caused by climate change," said Katiyar. However, environmentalists see it as another sign of changing weather.According to Kulbhushan Upmanyu, a Chamba-based veteran environmentalist, an early warming of the weather can have far-reaching consequences in the state. "All extreme weather events are the side effects of a changing climate. Besides adversely impacting agriculture and horticulture in the state, an early warming of the weather, as we are seeing this month, can speed up the melting of glaciers and trigger forest fires early and prolong the fire season," said Upmanyu.Arrival of heat wave in Himachal Pradesh2022: March 16 2023: No heat wave 2024: May 19 2025: April 6 2026: March 6High temperature in MarchDate | Highest Max temp | Highest Min temp March 5 | 34.5 | 17.8 March 6 | 34 | 18.9 March 7 | 33.8 | 19.7 March 8 | 33.4 | 19.9 March 9 | 35 | 18 March 10 | 34.7 | 19.5 March 11 | 33.2 | 19.5 March 12 | 32.6 | 17.8 MSID: 129551462 413 |