The region comprising of Vidarbha, Marathwada and Telangana is one of the most intense heat pockets of the India.
Nagpur situated in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra is the Urban Heat Island of Vidarbha. To be precise, Nagpur is the metropolitan area which is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities. In fact, it is one of the major hottest cities of the state.
Being in the central part of the country, Nagpur starts heating up from February itself. At times, heatwave conditions are observed in March as well with maximums steadily climbing thereafter. April and May are the hottest months for the winter capital and the third largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. The normal average for April is 40.5°C and May being the hottest month records about 42°C.
Out of 28 days in April, the city has surpassed the 40-degree mark about 26 times with the highest temperature of 45°C being recorded on April 21. For the last 20 days in a row, Nagpur has seen the mercury rise above 40°C. On Thursday, Nagpur recorded 43.2°C as the maximum. The all-time highest for the month of April is also quite high at 47.1°C, recorded in 2009.
April is the driest month with average rainfall being 7.8 mm. A completely dry April is nothing surprising for the city. Normally, Nagpur receives rainfall only during the Monsoon months as the winter system do not reach up to Vidarbha and the Northeast Monsoon systems also remain confined to Karnataka and Telangana mostly. As of now, people in Nagpur should eagerly wait for the spell of rain in Maharashtra and Nagpur between May 3 and 6.
Exceeding 40°C in the month of April is quite common for places lying in Vidarbha but reaching 45°C is rare. Considering the fact that Nagpur is an urban agglomeration, 45°C becomes excruciating.
Image Credit - Wall Street Journal
