Ahmedabad: At a time when many parts of Gujarat including its largest city Ahmedabad are experiencing unusually high maximum temperatures and a mild summer like feeling with mercury soaring again up to 40°C at some places, the Met center Director Jayata Sarkar today said that there was nothing abnormal in it and was being felt owing to the ongoing withdrawal of monsoon which this time around lingered much beyond the normal period accompanied by changed wind pattern.

Today Bhuj recorded the highest of 40°C while Ahmedabad remained second highest with 39.4°C which was over 3 notches more than the normal. Yesterday also the temperatures as many places were in the same range.

Many other places including Deesa, Idar, Gandhinagar, Kandla etc saw close to 40 °C temperatures today.

Such type of temperature for this period of the year when Diwali and Gujarati new year which brings the feeling of pink winter with them were just around the corner, was being seen as somewhat abnormal phenomenon by commoners.

But Met Director Sarkar terms it completely normal in the wake of the long lingered monsoon this year.

‘In fact owing to over-stayed monsoon, since June- July this year, there was good rain and most of the time the skies remained overcast. The cloudy or partially cloudy sky most of the time during monsoon had stopped the direct solar radiation process and the maximum temperatures since long had been around 31 to 32°C. So after the start of withdrawal of monsoon recently, the skies are now clear with no cloud in Kutch and Gujarat region. It has started direct solar radiation again after a long time raising the temperatures and people who had become used to of a lower temperatures for a long time earlier feel it. Also the changed wind pattern from humid South Westerly to now dry North Westerly, it seems hotter,’ he said.

Sarkar said that this feeling will remain for some time and in the coming days the temperatures would go down.

Meanwhile according to met bulletin the maximum temperature in Ahmedabad tomorrow would also remain around 39°C. The same feeling of hot weather especially during noon period would remain there. The lower temperature in the city today was around 24.3°C and it was also around a degree above normal.

The sudden change in weather has prompted many to again start using the air-conditioners, which were virtually lying idle a few days back owing to the lowered temperatures. A resident of Ghatlodiya Jayesh Dave today said that he is using the AC at home after a long time again. ‘The hot weather like feeling in the afternoon and sometimes at night has prompted many of the otherwise occasional middle class AC users to on the machines again,’ he said.

Notably Gujarat has seen over 110% monsoon rain this year. The monsoon had also arrived early this year and its withdrawal is taking place late too.

DeshGujarat