Mumbai swelters at 33.8 degrees; IMD says no respite until Jan 30

On Sunday, IMD’s Santacruz station logged a temperature of 35 degrees Celsius, marking a departure of over three degrees above the normal, and the Colaba coastal observatory recorded 32.2 degrees during the same period.

On Monday too, maximum temperatures hovered around 33.8 degrees Celsius, remaining 2.2 degrees above the normal.

Sunil Kamble, Director of IMD Mumbai, told The Indian Express that the above normal temperatures are a result of the easterlies.

“Currently, we are receiving easterlies during the day time and there are also some passing western disturbances. Therefore, we are expecting that the temperatures will remain for the next two to three days,” said Kamble.

According to the weather bureau, Mumbai may see a steep drop in temperatures, starting January 31, when the daytime temperatures may dip up to 31 degrees Celsius.

The minimum temperature is also likely to dip to 17-18 degrees Celsius over the weekend.

Mumbai has been reeling under several warm days this month, starting with a high of 36 degrees Celsius on January 3, which was the city’s hottest January day since 2016. Over the previous weekend too, Santacruz logged 35.3 degrees. After recording a small dip, the temperature spiked again during the week.

Kamble said the prolonged absence of a cool spell in Mumbai is the result of a lack of heavy snowfall over the past days in the northern belt.

Deonar reels under ‘poor’ air for over a week

On Monday, the city logged an overall air quality index (AQI) of 148, which is categorised as moderate. However, Deonar languished under “poor” AQI for the seventh day in the past one week.

While the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) did not furnish data for January 21 and January 24, records showed that AQI in Deonar breached the 200-mark for seven consecutive days since January 19. On Monday too, Deonar logged a poor AQI of 244, with PM2.5 being the most prominent pollutant.

Besides Deonar, data furnished by CPCB’s Sameer portal showed that the worst air quality was recorded in Mazgaon (194), Sion (171) and Sewri (187). Only Colaba and Borivali logged satisfactory air between 50 – 100.