The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday has issued warnings for continued heatwave to severe heatwave conditions in Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh-Delhi, Uttar Pradesh from May 19 to May 22. Similar heatwave conditions are expected in parts of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha. Residents are urged to take precautions to avoid heat-related issues.
Temperatures in Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh-Delhi, Uttar Pradesh are expected to climb between 43°C and 46°C; while the mercury will stay 2-4°C above normal in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha.
Rainfall and storm Alerts
As northern India grapples with intense heat, southern and eastern regions will have to brace for substantial rainfall and stormy weather over the next week. Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal, Kerala and Mahe, Lakshadweep, and south Karnataka will see fairly widespread to widespread light to moderate rainfall with thunderstorms and gusty winds (40-50 kmph) over the next six to seven days.
Isolated heavy rainfall is expected in coastal Karnataka from May 19 to May 22, south Interior Karnataka from May 21-22 and Lakshadweep from May 19-21.
Residents of Tamil Nadu should be prepared for extremely heavy rainfall between today and May 21, while south interior Karnataka will experience similar conditions from May 19-20.
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands will see fairly widespread to widespread light to moderate rainfall over the next seven days, with isolated heavy rainfall likely over the Nicobar Islands from May 20-22.
Eastern and northeastern India
Eastern and northeastern states can also expect their share of weather activity. Scattered to fairly widespread light to moderate rainfall with thunderstorms and gusty winds (40-50 kmph) is anticipated over Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim for the next seven days.
Similar weather patterns will affect Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, and Tripura for the next five days, with isolated heavy rainfall expected in Sikkim from May 19-20 and Arunachal Pradesh on May 19. Assam and Meghalaya can anticipate very heavy rainfall during this period, with Meghalaya likely seeing particularly intense downpours on May 19th and 20th.
Western disturbance
A fresh Western Disturbance will bring isolated to scattered light rainfall with thunderstorms and lightning over Jammu-Kashmir-Ladakh-Gilgit-Baltistan-Muzaffarabad and Himachal Pradesh on May 19, and over Uttarakhand in the coming week. Additionally, strong surface winds (25-35 kmph) are expected in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan for the next five days.
