Mumbai continues to experience nip in the air, cool conditions to prevail for two more days

Pic/Ashish Raje

Mumbai continues to witness a decrease in temperature, with cool conditions expected to continue for two more days, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The city recorded a minimum temperature of 18 degrees Celsius on Tuesday morning, following a low of 17.9 degrees Celsius on Monday, the lowest March temperature in four years.

As per IMD data, Mumbai had recorded 17.9 degrees Celsius at Santacruz, the lowest minimum temperature recorded in March since 2020, while Colaba reported 19 degrees Celsius on Monday.

The minimum temperature in the metropolis has seen a drop of one to two degrees Celsius from the average, newswire PTI reported. Colaba had recorded a maximum temperature of 28.5 degrees Celsius, while Santacruz was at 29.4 degrees Celsius on Monday.

Mumbai's all-time lowest minimum temperature in March was 12.7 degrees Celsius in 2012, it said.

On Tuesday, the minimum temperature recorded at Santacruz was 18 degrees Celsius and 20.5 degrees Celsius at Colaba, the IMD said.

IMD director Sunil Kamble told PTI that for the last couple of days, Mumbai's maximum temperature was in the range of 25 to 30 degrees Celsius and minimum temperature was 18 to 20 degrees Celsius, mainly due to a change in the wind patterns.

"The main reason for the temperature drop in Mumbai is the wind patterns. Snowfall in Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh, along with northerly and westerly winds, have brought down the temperature," Kamble said.

The cool conditions are likely to prevail for the next two days before a slow rise in the temperature, he said.

On March 1, the India Meteorological Department said that Maharashtra will witness more heatwave days in 2024 as it predicted a warmer start to summer across India.

"India is likely to experience a warmer start to the summer season this year with El Nino conditions predicted to continue through the season," the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Friday.

More heatwave days than normal are predicted over northeast peninsular India -- Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and north interior Karnataka -- and many parts of Maharashtra and Odisha.

The country is likely to record above-normal rainfall in March (more than 117 per cent of the long-period average of 29.9 mm).

India is likely to see above-normal maximum and minimum temperatures in most parts of the country in the March to May period, IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said at a press conference.

Heatwave conditions are not expected over north and central India in March, he said. (With inputs from PTI)