Scores of people die every year due to cold waves that sweep across the north Indian plains.
Climate change has hampered the ability of the forecasting agencies to accurately predict severe events and weather bureaus across the world are focusing on augmenting the observational network density and the weather prediction modelling to improve predictability, India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra has said.
22 bodies, 13 from Kottayam district and 9 from Idukki were recovered from various rain-hit areas while National Disaster Response Force teams continued their rescue operations.
The mercury breached the 46-degree Celsius mark in several places such as Allahabad (46.8 degrees Celsius) and Jhansi (46.2 degrees Celsius) in Uttar Pradesh; Sports Complex (46.4 degrees Celsius) in Delhi; Ganganagar (46.4 degrees Celsius) in Rajasthan; Nowgong (46.2 degrees Celsius) in Madhya Pradesh; and Maharashtra's Chandrapur (46.4 degrees Celsius).
According to an IMD forecast issued on Thursday, a heatwave spell will persist over northwest and central India during the next five days and over east India during the next three days.
The Amarnath pilgrimage resumed on Monday after remaining suspended for three days following flash floods that claimed 15 lives, while the Jammu and Kashmir administration said it would get a clear picture by Tuesday about the damage.
As cyclone Hudhud weakened and moved to Chhattisgarh, Odisha government on Monday braced for relief and rehabilitation in the affected southern districts where its damaged houses and uprooted trees even as heavy rainfall was expected to lash these areas.
With mercury level soaring, Kerala is likely to face drought-like situation amid fears of drinking water scarcity and power crisis in the poll-bound state as water bodies are fast drying up.
At least 33 people have been killed in flash floods in Bihar till Tuesday evening and 25.71 lakh people are affected in 16 districts of the state.
Chennai on Wednesday turned a virtual island after unprecedented rains in 100 years pounded the city, shutting the airport and rendering thousands homeless.
The death toll in the two high intensity quakes that rattled Bihar on Tuesday rose to 19 on Wednesday, with two more deaths reported from Vaishali and Siwan districts.
The Indian Meteorological Department has issued a warning about havoc rainfall or a cloud burst hitting Bihar's flood-affected districts in the next 24 to 48 hours, officials said on Sunday.
Centre ordered release of Rs 1,086 crore to four states as advance financial assistance for undertaking preventive and relief measures to deal with the cyclone.
Thunderstorms and dust storms are 'very likely' on Tuesday too, the weather office warned.
The IMD has issued an orange alert for Mumbai, warning of very heavy rains at isolated places with strong winds on Monday as the very severe cyclonic storm Tauktae is likely to pass close to the Mumbai coast towards Gujarat.
Poor rain threatens recovery in production this season, sugar prices at three-month high
The mercury at the Safdarjung Observatory is expected to breach the 43-degree mark on Thursday and touch 44 degrees Celsius by Friday, according to the India meteorological department.
For the second successive year, Monsoon is likely to be below normal with parts of north-west and central India to be the most affected.
The state has suffered losses of Rs 4,000 crore and the figure is likely to go up as estimates continue to pour in, he said.
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The final countdown for India's historic Mars mission kicked off at 6.08 am today.
'The food security along the coastal region will be severely affected.'
Flood victims have been fighting for survival and living in temporary shelters nearby railway tracks with lack of food items. They are yet to get any help from the government, reports M I Khan.
'If because of El Nino, the monsoon is affected adversely in the current year, naturally it will affect income projections and consequently Budget numbers.'
The IMD also issued a red alert in the same 10 districts for August 3 also.
The IMD chief also allayed fears of occurrence of an El-Nino.
States have been told to prepare in advance to counter any impact of an adverse southwest monsoon.
55% of cultivable land still doesn't come under irrigation.
RIL was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 2.63 per cent, followed by NTPC, Axis Bank, Tata Steel, PowerGrid, HDFC twins, Bharti Airtel, M&M, ICICI Bank, SBI and Bajaj Finance -- gaining up to 2.51 per cent.
Modi called for timely evacuation of those involved in off-shore activities.
13 out of the world's 20 most polluted cities are in India. Most shockingly, the latest Central Pollution Control Board statistics reveal that the pollution levels in Gwalior, Raipur and even little known Kashipur are higher than that of Delhi which means we have some of the most polluted zones in the world.
The current crisis Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is facing is a cumulative effect of inattention to water management and the fiscal burden of populist promises, says Aditi Phadnis.
A minister said the country had 7% less rain than normal.
An estimated 30,000 people along coastal areas will be moved to safer places in Kutch district of Gujarat from Wednesday as the very severe cyclonic storm Nilofar hurtles towards the state and slams it by November 1 afternoon.
IMD has decided to increasingly use cutting-edge technology such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in forecasting, both to avoid such glitches and to counter the disruption of normal seasonal patterns as a result of climate change. It has formed various internal sub-groups of senior officials and meteorologists to decide on how best to use AI and ML in predicting cyclone intensity, and in making short-range weather forecasts (those valid for up to three hours) as well as long-range forecasts.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reviewed the preparedness to deal with the situation arising out of the likely formation of Cyclone Jawad that is expected to hit the North Andhra Pradesh-Odisha coast and directed officials to take every possible measure to ensure that people are safely evacuated.
The Centre has asked Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar Islands to ensure that health facilities are stocked with essential medicines and supplies to meet any exigencies in the wake of Cyclone Yaas which is expected to make a landfall later this month.
Addressing Indian workers at a medical camp in downtown Doha, Modi said he is aware of the issues being faced by Indian workers and the companies that bring them here.
"The death toll has gone up to 24. The search operations are still going on. However, rains have started. "Despite that, our officials, and the NDRF are engaged in search and rescue operations," Idukki District Collector H Dineshan said.
June 1 is the official onset date of monsoon in India when it hits Kerala.
Gale-force winds, heavy rainfall and high tidal waves swept the coastal belts of Maharashtra and Goa as Cyclone Tauktae hurtled northwards towards Gujarat.
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