Kolkata: Those celebrating Holi outdoors may face the burn of a steadfastly rising maximum temperature, likely to cross 34°C on Monday. The real feel temperature may touch 40°C, due to local heating.
In the absence of rain, the maximum temperature jumped over a notch to 33.6°C on Sunday from Saturday’s 32.4°C. This came as an about-turn to the 21.1°C maximum on Wednesday, which turned out to be the second-lowest March maximum in 54 years. From 13 degrees below normal on Wednesday, the maximum is likely to see a 13-degree hike to the month’s highest temperature by Monday.
“There is a slight chance of a small thundershower event on Tuesday or Wednesday that could bring some respite. If the chance of rainfall subsides, the temperature is likely to go up to 35°C by Tuesday,” said Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) director G K Das.
While March has been relatively cool, the rapid heating over the last week is a contrast to last year, when the month did not see a single day where the maximum was above 35°C. Despite marginal chances of rainfall in the last week of this month, the maximum is likely to climb beyond 35°C.
On the other hand, local heating from the sustained absence of rain or clouding may push up the real-feel maximum temperature to nearly 40°C between Monday and Tuesday, from the 38°C on Sunday. Meanwhile, the minimum temperature is likely to increase to 26°C from 25.5°C on Sunday.