Bhubaneswar: Already sizzling under high temperature for the last few days, Odisha is likely to remain under the grip of severe heatwave conditions at least for the next 24 hours, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday.
However, IMD has also predicted that several places in the state will experience nor’wester rain between April 21 and 24, bringing the much-needed respite from the scorching heatwave conditions. Maximum temperature is likely to drop by two to three degree Celsius for the next four days.
The Meteorological Centre in Bhubaneswar said that heatwave conditions is likely to prevail at a few places with severe heatwave at one or two places over Angul, Mayurbhanj, Sambalpur, Boudh and Nayagarh, Cuttack, Keonjhar, Anugul, and Balangir districts.
Heatwave conditions is likely to prevail at some places in f Kendrapada, Jagatsinghpur, Dhenkanal, Jajpur, Kandhamal, Koraput, Malkangiri, Jharsugada, Bargad, Sonpur, Balangir, Nuapada, Kalahandi, Ganjam and Gajapati, Balasore.
Hot and humid weather conditions are likely to prevail at many places in the districts of Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapada, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam, Gajapati.
Amid blistering heatwave conditions, the mercury breached 32°C in many places across the state by 8.30 am on Saturday. Bhawanipatna was the hottest place in the state with 35 degrees Celsius by 8.30 am. Balangir closely followed with 34.2 degrees C, while Rourkela, Cuttack, Baripada, Keonjhar Jharsuguda, Balasore recorded 33 degrees C each. The maximum temperature at Chandbali was 33.8 degrees C.
Other places that recorded maximum temperatures of above 30°C on Saturday morning include Titilagarh (32.4), Bhubaneswar (32.2) Talcher (32.2), Bhadrak (31.4), Buapada (31.4) and Jagatsinghpur (31.4).
Meanwhile, the Centre for Environment and Climate (CEC) of Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (SOA) said that development of anticyclone in the Bay of Bengal may bring some respite from the extreme heat wave conditions prevailing across Odisha from April 21,
The extreme heat may continue for one more day on Saturday but there may be flow of weak sea breeze into the coastal districts and nearby regions from April 21 which might continue till April 25, CEC Director S C Sahu said.
An anticyclone is an area of high pressure where the air moves clockwise in the northern hemisphere and anti-clockwise in the southern hemisphere.
There was also probability of occurrence of norwester accompanied by rain and thunder on the evening of April 21 and also the next day in the coastal and southern districts of Odisha, Dr. Sahu said.
However, the day temperature will hover between 38 degrees C and 41 degrees C in the interior districts and between 37 degrees C and 39 degrees C in the coastal belt. Some of the stations could record less than 36 degrees C also, he said.
The day temperature may shoot up subsequently due to disappearance of anti-cyclone and absence of sea breeze from April 26 which will continue till April 30 with day temperature rising to 44 or 45 degrees C from April 28, he said.
