Not just for Narender Modi, Vibrant Gujarat is also famous for the beautiful Rann Utsav which takes place every year in the winter months. However, this time around, travellers and locals have been shivering in an unusually cold weather in Gujarat as minimums have been settling 4 to 7 degrees below the normal average.
Meteorologists say, weather in Gujarat turned oppressively cold in the last few weeks as a result of two consecutive cold spells in North India in the last week of December and the first week of January. And with another spell of cold weather in North India in the offing, weather in Gujarat during the two month long Rann Utsav (15th December 2013 - 15th February 2014) is likely to observe severe cold once again.
The festival started off amid comfortable weather in Gujarat but around New Years, the mercury levels dropped drastically, catching the tourists unaware.
Minimum temperatures in Bhuj where the Rann Utsav is held every year, settled at 7⁰C (6 degrees below normal) on the 31st December. Nearby stations of Rajkot and Naliya also remained punishingly cold with minimums settling at 7⁰C and 3⁰C respectively. Cold wave conditions continued through the New Year with minimums in Bhuj settling at 7⁰C on the 1st of January. Minimums in Rajkot and Naliya on the same date were 6⁰C and 5⁰C respectively. Days too have been cold in the region with maximums settling around 20⁰C (7 degrees below the normal average).
“Minimums in Bhuj though rose in the last 48 to 72 hours to settle around 10⁰C, it could possibly fall again and settle between 6 and 8⁰C in the coming days, due to cold weather in North India. However, Naliya remained colder than Delhi at many occasions, with minimums settling between 3 and 5⁰C for the last one week”, said meteorologist at Skymetweather.com
“Desert terrain in Kutch and Bhuj causes the temperatures to drop sharply if cold northerly winds from the North travel up to Gujarat but it is important to note that frequent cold spells from North India leading to frequent cold wave conditions in Gujarat is an unusual event”, added the meteorologist.
Photo by Coxandkings.
