Women use whatever they can find to survive the relentless heat, as pre-monsoon temperatures continue to rise across several Indian states. (Photo: PTI)

Split Sunday: Heat wave to bake North and West India, storms to batter South and East

India is set for a split weather pattern on Sunday, with heat wave conditions in Rajasthan and Gujarat, and thunderstorms across southern and eastern states.

by · India Today

In Short

  • Phalodi in Rajasthan recorded a scorching 44.8 degrees Celsius Saturday.
  • West Rajasthan faces heat wave conditions for the next seven days.
  • Thunderstorms with gusts up to 70 kmph are likely over eastern India.

India is, quite literally, a country of two weathers on Sunday, May 10.

While Rajasthan and Gujarat continue to sweat through dangerous heat wave conditions, much of southern and eastern India is bracing for violent thunderstorms, lightning, and fierce gusts of wind.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), this is a textbook pre-monsoon scenario, and it is playing out simultaneously across thousands of kilometres.

WHAT IS A HEAT WAVE, AND WHERE IS IT HITTING INDIA?

A heat wave is officially declared when temperatures at a station in the plains touch at least 40 degrees Celsius and are at least 4.5 degrees above what is normal for that time of year.

West Rajasthan is well inside that threshold and faces heat wave conditions for the next seven days, according to the IMD. Gujarat is flagged from May 9 to 14.

While the north swelters, parts of India are also bracing for fierce gusty winds and thunderstorms, creating a tale of two extremes on May 10. (Photo: PTI)

The hottest temperature recorded in the country recently was a brutal 44.8 degrees Celsius at Phalodi in Rajasthan.

Delhi, meanwhile, gets a slight reprieve on Sunday, with maximum temperatures expected in the 36 to 38 degrees Celsius range under mainly clear skies.

But temperatures across northwest India are set to climb by three to five degrees Celsius over the coming week.

WHY ARE THUNDERSTORMS BATTERING SOUTH AND EAST INDIA?

Several weather systems are conspiring at once.

A Western Disturbance, a system that originates over the Mediterranean Sea and carries moisture-laden winds eastward into the Indian subcontinent, is arriving at the Western Himalayas from May 10.

Separately, an upper-air cyclonic circulation, a rotating pocket of winds at higher altitudes in the atmosphere, sits over the Gulf of Mannar.

Under its influence, the IMD expects a low-pressure area, which is a region where surface winds spiral inward and upward, fuelling rain clouds, to develop over the southwest Bay of Bengal around May 11.

Together, these systems are driving scattered thunderstorms with gusty winds of 30 to 50 kilometres per hour across Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, and Karaikal.

Telangana and Coastal Karnataka are also on watch on Sunday.

IS EAST INDIA AT RISK TOO?

Very much so. Thundersqualls, which are abrupt and violent gusts that rise in a matter of seconds, reaching 50 to 60 kilometres per hour and spiking to 70 kilometres per hour, are expected over Gangetic West Bengal and Chhattisgarh.

Kolkata residents should keep a close eye on the sky.

A zookeeper sprays water on a tiger to ease heat stress as temperatures in parts of India surge past 40 degrees Celsius, according to IMD. (Photo: PTI)

IMD advises people in heat wave zones to drink plenty of water, use oral rehydration salts, and avoid going outdoors during peak afternoon hours.

In storm-prone areas, the department urges everyone to stay indoors, unplug electrical appliances, avoid sheltering under trees, and stay away from water bodies.

- Ends