Bihar: Easterly winds halt mercury rise, respite till April 6

PATNA: Heatwave is knocking on the doors of the state with summer entering its peak months of April and May. According to the Patna Meteorological Centre's bulletin on Wednesday, Gaya and Dehri experienced heatwave over the past 24 hours.
However, the rise of mercury was halted on Wednesday and weathermen have forecast that heatwave is unlikely to strike the state for the next four to five days.
According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), a place is said to be hit by a heatwave when the normal temperature is 40 degrees C and above, and the actual temperature continues to be 4.5 notches above the respective normal for two consecutive days.
While the maximum temperature at Dehri was highest in the state on Tuesday as it stood at 42 degrees C, the corresponding reading in Gaya stood at 41.4 degrees C. However, the maximum temperature at Gaya went down to 37.3 degrees C on Wednesday.
Similarly in Patna, after the decade's highest maximum temperature in March was recorded on Tuesday, residents got a minor respite as the maximum temperature came down to 35.2 degrees C on Wednesday from 39.6 degrees C on Tuesday.
Discomforting heat is unlikely in the state capital over the next week as the forecast says the maximum temperature is likely to hover in the range of 35-37 degrees C till April 6."The rise in temperature on Tuesday was due to southwesterly winds blowing coming from Rajasthan, which is witnessing heatwave conditions. However, the wind- direction changed to easterly on Tuesday night, which kept a tab on the rising temperature," said Shailendra Kumar Patel, a meteorologist at the Patna Meteorological Centre.
He added, "The maximum across the state is expected to remain in the range of 35-37 degrees C till April 4, following which an upward trend may be witnessed again."
The centre's bulletin also predicted a rise in maximum temperature by 3-4 degrees C over the next 48 hours across the state.
The centre's bulletin also predicted a rise in maximum temperature by 3-4 degrees hovering in the range of 35-37 degree C over the next 48 hours across the state