Bhubaneswar: Heatwave conditions made Odisha Capital, Bhubaneswar, burn as the smart city recorded a maximum temperature of 40.4 degrees Celsius on Friday.
After topping the temperature chart in the country for the last 2 days, the mercury in Bhubaneswar on Friday shot past 40 degree Celsius.
Mercury levels in several parts of Odisha rose unusually on Friday ahead of the onset of summer.
On Wednesday, the capital city of Odisha recorded 38 degrees Celsius while on Thursday the maximum temperature recorded was 39.4 degrees Celsius, the highest in the country on both days.
Bhubaneswar, known for its pleasant weather, had recorded last decade’s highest temperature of 40.9 degrees Celsius on February 20, 2016 and an all-time high of 42.7 degrees Celsius on February 23, 1963.
The Regional Meteorological Office said the maximum and minimum temperatures for Bhubaneswar in the next 24 hours will be around 39 degrees Celsius and 18 degrees Celsius respectively
Seventeen other stations, including Balasore, Cuttack, Sambalpur, Sundargarh and Baripada recorded temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius.
“A high-pressure zone extending up to Jharkhand and West Bengal exists over Bhubaneswar. Due to the presence of the high-pressure zone, the air parcels sink downward (towards Earth’s surface), and as a result adiabatic warming takes place. Moreover, factors like solar radiation (Insolation) and lighter wind add up to the heat. These phenomena together are behind the rise in city temperature to around 40 degree Celsius,” said IMD Bhubaneswar director HR Biswas.
The rise in temperatures before the end of February forced the state government to reschedule school timings for classes 9-12.
Students of classes 9 and 10 will attend schools from 7 am to 9 am, while pupils of classes 10 and 12 will go to schools from 9 am to 1 pm from March 1 onwards, he said.
