The Met office has done Delhi a favour. Weather reports for the city are now available locality-wise. People can compare temperatures in their locality with their friends and relatives in other localities. This can give them a reality check on the state of summer in their part of the city. The Met office earlier gave reports for Palam and Safdarjung airports only.
These were only indicative reports for the vast metropolis. Palam was a deserted place for decades, except for a village, although Safdarjung had in its vicinity INA, Lodhi Road, Laxmibai Nagar, and Sarojini Nagar colonies.
A difference of even one-degree centigrade could make a big difference for the city. The Met Office has recently set up weather stations spread all over the city, which give the residents the weather picture closer to their homes. Now we know the city is sizzling from Narela to Najafgarh.
A few days back Mayur Vihar had 39 degrees C temperature while reports came of 40 degrees C and heatwaves in some other colonies. Seasons surprise Delhi. They have done this year also. It rained every other day when winter was about to end this year. There was a break not even of a few days when hot winds came and spring turned into autumn.
While Delhi thought summer meant May or June, March had temperatures soaring, and advisories were issued for heatwaves. The yellow bee with a venomous sting is hovering around windows to build a nest for itself. Delhi’s weather is getting similar to Central Indian cities like Raipur or Nagpur, or cities in Gujarat. Locality-wise temperature reports from the Met office can help FM radio channels to give heatwave alerts, just as they give early morning tips on traffic jams on prominent road routes.
The weather alerts can help people dress accordingly and carry drinking water bottles. For Delhi’ites, March was a preparatory month for summer. Children were appearing in examinations. Slowly, the streets became quieter with lesser crowds. This year, cucumber sellers are already out and lemons have become a precious commodity.
Ice cream trolleys have increased and one can see their business going up when evening turns into night. Delhi has a fascination for food in the late evening hours and people enjoy cool weather with sherbets, fruit juices, and even gol gappas. After the morning walk, parks are visited more for food stalls at their entrances in the afternoons.
There is some connection between the hot winds and some birds’ hoo-hooo all-day. Now every cool place appears heavenly; even a few minutes’ stay in air-conditioned ATMs give relief.
As temperatures rise, the Delhi Metro becomes a preferred mode of travel for its cool coaches. A DTC bus succumbed to the heatwave and caught fire in the city a few days back. If summer comes, can fires be far behind in the city? Delhi has to prepare for a long summer, dust storms, and polluted air. When are the rains coming? Does the weather office know?