Season’s coldest day in 7 yrs
At 11.3°C, Mumbaikars enjoyed the coldest day of the season on Friday, after seven years. Early morning joggers, walkers, workers and students were forced to wear light jackets and hoodies before setting off from home. It was the second lowest minimum temperature recorded, with the mercury having plummeted to 10.4°C in 2013.
The minimum temperature recorded at Colaba was 14.5°C, 5.5°C below normal while the maximum temperature also dropped to 25.3°C, the lowest in a decade. The lowest maximum temperature recorded in the city was 26°C, on January 12, 2014.
KS Hosalikar, deputy director general, India Meteorological Dept (IMD), tweeted that day-time temperatures were expected to remain low due to the chilly winds. “Lowest min temp recorded after year 2013. With the winds chill factor too coming in...Feels lower than actual. Day time temp are expected to be low,” he tweeted.
“Both the maximum and minimum temperatures have witnessed a steady decline over the past six days, falling well below the normal owing to cold and dry winds from northern parts of the country,” said Hosalikar.
However, this chilly weather will not last, given that the IMD has predicted a maximum temperature of 29°C and a minimum of 16°C for the next 48 hours.
Location-wise, Borivli was the coldest, at 10°C, followed by Powai 10.3°C; Kandivli at 15°C and in Navi Mumbai, Panvel was coldest at 12°C.
“Not just Mumbai, but the cold spell is likely to prevail in areas of north Maharashtra on Friday, with temperatures expected to gradually rise from the weekend onwards,” said Hosalikar.
Meanwhile, pollution levels, too, were at their lowest for the year, as the air quality index (AQI) was recorded at 92, falling under the ‘satisfactory’ category for the pollutant particle matter concentration PM2.5 in Mumbai. Researchers said pollution levels dipped as the high wind speed dispersed pollutants.