Temperatures in several parts of Delhi again breached the 47 degrees Celsius mark on Monday, with the weather office issuing a ‘red alert’ for the next five days due to heatwave to severe heatwave conditions in the national capital.
The searing heat pushed the city’s peak power demand to its highest for May, while the Delhi government directed the schools that have not closed for summer vacations to do so with immediate effect.
Delhi has been seeing a steady rise in temperature in recent days, culminating in the highest temperature recorded this summer on Sunday when the overall temperature reached 44.4 degrees Celsius. Saturday’s temperature was 43.6 degrees Celsius, up from 42.5 degrees Celsius on Friday.
On Monday the national capital experienced the second-highest maximum temperature, 3.7 degrees above normal.
Najafgarh recorded a high of 47.4 degrees Celsius on Monday, a day after the southwest Delhi area had recorded 47.8 degrees Celsius — the highest in the country so far this season.
Mungeshpur recorded 47.1 degrees, Aya Nagar recorded 45.7 degrees, Pusa recorded 46.1 degrees, Pitampura recorded 46.6 degrees, and Palam recorded 45.2 degrees.
The crippling heat is especially straining low-income households, which often have poor access to water and cooling, and testing the endurance of people who have to venture outside for work and other chores.
There is a very high likelihood of developing heat-related illness and heat stroke in people of all ages, and a significant health concern for vulnerable individuals such as infants, the elderly, and those with chronic diseases
“Avoid heat exposure and keep cool. Avoid dehydration,” the IMD said.
