Red alert issued in Vidarbha as Maharashtra battles prolonged and severe heatwave spell

Nagpur and several parts of Vidarbha continued to reel under intense heatwave conditions on Thursday with temperatures remaining well above 45 degrees Celsius in multiple districts across the regionAccording to India Meteorological Department IMD data Brahmapuri in Chandrapur district recorded the highest temperature at 471 degrees Celsius followed closely by Chandrapur at 468 degrees Celsius Wardha and Gadchiroli registered 464 degrees Celsius each while Nagpur city touched 46 degrees Celsius amid persistent hot and dry conditionsWith daytime temperatures soaring and nights also remaining unusually warm weather officials have advised citizens to avoid direct exposure to sunlight during afternoon hours restrict outdoor movement and maintain adequate hydration as severe heatwave conditions continue unabatedThe Regional Meteorological Centre RMC Nagpur has issued a red alert for several districts in eastern Vidarbha warning that temperatures are likely to hover between 46 degrees Celsius and 47 degrees Celsius over the next five to seven days Authorities have also indicated that the heatwave spell is likely to intensify in certain pockets of the regionSpeaking to ANI Meteorologist Pravin Kumar from RMC Nagpur said the eastern Vidarbha belt is witnessing extreme and sustained heat conditionsldquoThe temperature in the eastern Vidarbha region is around 4647 degrees Celsius Our forecast for the next 57 days is that some districts will be kept on a red alert because the temperature will be around 4647 degrees Celsiusrdquo he saidSevere heatwave to persist in Vidarbha for next 3ndash5 days says IMDKumar further warned that severe heatwave conditions are expected to persist across several districts of Vidarbha over the next three to five days with places like Brahmapuri and Gadchiroli likely to reach up to 47 degrees Celsius He also noted that night temperatures are remaining above normal adding to the overall thermal stressldquoThe temperature in Akola Amravati and Wardha will be above normal during the day and night Chandrapur Yavatmal Nagpur and Gondia will also be kept on yellow and orange alerts because the temperature will be above normal during the day and night The heatwave warning has been issued for the next 35 daysrdquo Kumar saidHe added that Brahmapuri Gadchiroli and their nearby districts are expected to remain among the worst affected with peak temperatures consistently nearing 47 degrees CelsiusOn Wednesday Kumar had stated that Wardha recorded the highest temperature in the Vidarbha region at 471 degrees Celsius while Nagpur crossed 46 degrees Celsius marking the highest temperature recorded this season so farldquoThe situation will persist for the next 57 days Temperatures in most of the regions will be higher than normal Red Alert has been issued for a few districts Yellow and Orange Alerts have been issued for a few othersrdquo he had saidAuthorities have reiterated that heatwave to severe heatwave conditions are likely to continue across Vidarbha with multiple districts expected to remain under red orange and yellow alerts over the coming daysWith ANI inputs