First-of-its-kind heat index to help you be aware

With several parts of the country experiencing heat waves and the mercury slowly rising even in Mumbai, the weather department has decided to come up with a first-of-its-kind heat index, which will help citizens be up to date with the weather condition at a particular location.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) will launch the heat index this month and data will be available on the bureau’s website, with updates every three hours from all weather stations across India.

The index — a measure of how hot it really feels — will be calculated based on actual temperatures and relative humidity levels.

“Many times, when the temperatures are low, but humidity is high, we feel hotter than what the temperature projects. We don’t feel as hot when the temperatures are high and humidity levels are low,” said BP Yadav, director general, meteorology, IMD Delhi. “The index will give citizens accurate and updated information on the heat conditions specific to their areas.”

In addition to introducing terminologies, the index will also comprise a warning colour code, accompanied by information on health hazards if the temperature and humidity levels cross a particular threshold.

For instance, a heat index between 40 and 54 with humidity levels less than 70% and more than 70% is termed is ‘uncomfortable’ and ‘uncomfortable sultry’, with yellow and orange as warning colour codes, respectively.

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