Kolkata: As the mercury continues with its upward run, the nights are becoming as uncomfortable as the days in Kolkata and its suburbs. In fact, on Tuesday, the Alipore Met office recorded the highest minimum temperature — 29.1°C, which was 2.9 notches above normal — this summer. According to the weathermen, there is no respite for Kolkatans from the heat and humid weather until Saturday. The Met office has also issued a heat-wave warning for some districts.
A partly cloudy sky towards the early morning and strong surface wind prevented the maximum temperature from breaching the normal mark on Tuesday. At 35°C and close to a degree lower than the normal mark, it was only 5.9 notches above the minimum temperature.
“The southerly wind near the ground level, the moisture content, and light cloud over the sky are not allowing cooling during the night time. As a result, the minimum temperature was a high of 29.1°C, the highest this year,” said HR Biswas, the head of the weather forecast section at the Regional Meteorological Centre, Kolkata.
At present, the southerly wind system is bringing in moisture at the ground level. While heating and the moisture triggered some light cloud formation, the Met officials said the cloud mass is moving towards the northeast.
On Tuesday, even as the actual maximum temperature was only 35°C, the ‘feel like’ temperature went up to as high as 49.3°C. The Met officials said it was the high humidity that pushed the discomfort level, making people feel 49°C, a whopping 14 notches higher than the actual temperature.
“While we see no possibility of rain in the city until Saturday, during which the city will continue to reel under discomforting weather, we can expect thunderstorm activities from Sunday in various parts of south Bengal. In Kolkata, the possibility is there on Sunday,” said Biswas.
Even as Kolkata is likely to escape heat-wave conditions, the Met office has issued a warning for districts like West Burdwan, Birbhum, Bankura, Jhargram, Purulia, and West Midnapore between Wednesday and Saturday. The maximum temperature is expected to reach 40°C in these districts during this phase. In Kolkata, the mercury is expected to reach 37°C in the next one or two days.
