It's mercury vs poll heat in Tamil Nadu next few days
On Saturday, as many as 15 weather stations in the State recorded over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, of which the highest temperature reported in Salem was 41.5 degrees Celsius (106.7 degrees Fahrenheit) which was 5 degrees Celsius higher than usual. Also, Meenambakkam in Chennai recorded 39.6 degrees Celsius.
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CHENNAI: Along with campaign heat, the simmering summer will push mercury northbound in the poll-bound Tamil Nadu in the coming days. With just twelve days to go for the Lok Sabha elections, the bad news for the party functionaries and voters is that the weather will be cruel for the next few days.
The meteorological department had issued a heat wave warning for north interior districts of Tamil Nadu predicting a surge in the maximum temperature by 4 degrees Celsius. Tough days are ahead for the party functionaries who mobilise crowds for roadshows and public meetings with many senior politicians including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister MK Stalin all set to hit the roads for the final lap of electioneering.
On Saturday, as many as 15 weather stations in the State recorded over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, of which the highest temperature reported in Salem was 41.5 degrees Celsius (106.7 degrees Fahrenheit) which was 5 degrees Celsius higher than usual. Also, Meenambakkam in Chennai recorded 39.6 degrees Celsius.
The trough/wind discontinuity from east Vidarbha to Comorin area now runs from south Chhattisgarh to Comorin area across Vidarbha, Marathwada, interior Karnataka and interior Tamil Nadu at 0.9 km above mean sea level. Heat wave conditions are very likely to prevail over the State, the maximum temperature is expected to be 3 to 5 degrees Celsius normal at many pockets over plains of north interior areas of TN. The rest of the State might experience a surge of 2 to 4 degrees Celsius for the next two days.
The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) has warned of heatwave conditions over the State. Already a few interior districts witnessed a severe heat wave conditions where the maximum temperature has surged by 4.5 to 5 degrees Celsius. On Thursday, the highest temperature was recorded at Karur at 41.5°C (up 5°C), followed by Erode at 41.2°C (up 3.8°C), Salem at 41.2°C (up 3.6°C) and Dharmapuri at 41°C (+4.8°C).
"The weather department warned that hot and discomfort weather will prevail over isolated pockets of TN for the next few days due to high temperatures and humid conditions. And keeping the crowd and party workers hydrated during the campaign trail is a cumbersome process," said Aarani Srinivasan, a functionary with Puthiya Needhi Katchi, who is now campaigning in Vellore known for scorching summer.