Mumbai: IMD Data Shows That Jan 12 Was the Hottest Day This Year

Tuesday, January 12 was the hottest day of the year so far in Mumbai, touching 35.3 degrees Celsius as per data provided by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). By comparison, the hottest day in January 2020 was 34.5 degrees Celsius. 

The observatory in Colaba reported the above figures which the officials added was 5.1 degrees above normal. Meanwhile, the Colaba observatory recorded a maximum temperature of 32.8 degrees Celsius, said to be 3.3 degrees above normal. 

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Although minimum temperatures continued to remain high on Jan 12, it was lower than Monday’s figures. Data shows that Santacruz recorded a minimum temperature of 22.5 degrees Celsius on Tuesday while Colaba saw a minimum temperature of 23.4 degrees Celsius.

A senior official from the IMD said, “Usually, cold wave in the state and city is because of the cold wind coming in from north India. This year, however, there is a change in wind patterns. Warm easterly winds from Telangana and Tamil Nadu are causing temperatures to rise.” 

The city’s pollution levels have also raised some concerns among officials at the System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR). The silver lining in this report is that the air quality of Mumbai somewhat improved on Tuesday as compared to Monday and Sunday. 

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Tuesday recorded an Air-Quality Index (AQI) value of 218 which is categorized under “Poor”. However, Sunday’s AQI score was at 301 (Very Poor), while Monday was partially better with the city recording 256 on the index.  

It’s worth pointing out that Navi Mumbai witnessed the worst air quality as the region recorded an AQI of 319 while Colaba and Bandra Kurla Complex recorded scores of 306 and 300 respectively. An AQI score above 300 is considered to be dangerous for sensitive groups. 

“The air quality of Mumbai is in the poor category which is likely to further improve marginally by Wednesday. However, it may continue to remain in the poor category and desired relief is not expected for the next three days due to calm wind and relatively colder conditions,” a SAFAR spokesperson said. 

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