Temperatures rising, it may touch 40-degree mark soon, says MeT

The maximum temperature recorded on Friday was 34.5 degree Celsius, which was about three degree above normal whereas the minimum temperature recorded on early Thursday hours was 18.1 degree Celsius. On Thursday, the maximum temperature was already 35.1 degree Celsius, which was again 3.5 degree above normal.

A senior official at the Chandigarh meteorological department said, “According to the forecast, it will be a generally cloudy sky with possibility of thunder development/rain at isolated places and thereafter the sky will be clear causing temperatures to increase considerably.”

The temperatures in the nearby areas of the region are already inching closer to the 40 degree mark with Ambala and even Patiala already touching 36 degree and 35 degree respectively.

Of all the states in Punjab, Patiala was the warmest of all that saw the highest maximum temperature while in Haryana, the highest maximum temperature was that of Narnaul which recorded 39 degree Celsius already. The month of March has seen the highest maximum temperature even touching 37.0 degree which was on March 31 in 2022. In 2023, the maximum temperature recorded on March 31 was 32.4 degree.

In 2021, the highest maximum temperature recorded was 36.5 degree which was again on March 31. However, 2020 saw March recording 29.4 degree as the maximum temperature on March 24 and 25.

March (31) of the year 2019 saw 33.8 degree as the maximum temperature. In 2017, March’s highest temperature went up to 35.9 degree on March 30 that year. In 2018 March (31), the highest temperature recorded was 34.0 degree Celsius.

Years 2016 and 2015 had maximum temperatures going up to 33.4 degree and 33.6 degree on March 31 and March 29, respectively.

Lowest minimum temperatures of March

The lowest minimum temperatures of March have touched 7 degree as well which was in 2019. In March 2023, the lowest minimum that was recorded was 13.2 degree which was on March 7 whereas in March 2022, the lowest minimum was 10.5 degree, followed by 11.1 degree in March 2021. March of year 2020 saw lowest minimum going up to 10.4 degree whereas 2019 had the coldest march night with temperatures recording upto 7.0 degree as well which was on March 1.