Delhi has been experiencing an unprecedented heatwave for the last two weeks and is continuing to face the same in the coming days. As the heatwave continues to boil the people of Delhi-NCR one of the unknown areas of the national capital is gaining widespread attention, Mungeshpur. Delhi residents are familiar with places like Connaught Place, Mundka, Khan Market, and others for being in the limelight for various reasons. However, many were puzzled about the location of Mungeshpur and what factors made it hotter than other areas of the national capital.
Reports indicated that Mungeshpur recorded the highest temperature in the country, although this claim is being fact-checked.
The claim that Mungeshpur recorded 52.9 degrees Celcius on May 29 was under scrutiny. Delhi's primary weather station, Safdarjung Observatory, recorded a maximum temperature of 46.8 degrees Celsius, the highest in 79 years. Meanwhile, Mungeshpur, a small village in northwest Delhi near the Haryana border, reportedly hit 52.9 degrees Celsius. However, the claim was later revised to 52.3 degrees Celsius. Union Earth Science Minister Kiren Rijiju stated that such a high temperature in Delhi was "very unlikely" and that senior IMD officials were verifying the report. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) attributed this to a possible sensor error or "local factors".
Where Exactly Is Mungeshpur In Delhi?
Mungeshpur is located in northwest Delhi, close to the Haryana border. The village has consistently recorded higher temperatures than central Delhi's Connaught Place. Mungeshpur even surpassed the various regions of the national capital in terms of Delhi.
Local Factors Contributing To Heat
The extreme heat in Mungeshpur is not isolated. Last week, Najafgarh, another locality in northwest Delhi, recorded 47.8 degrees Celsius, surpassing the rest of Delhi and India.
"Certain parts of Delhi are vulnerable to the early arrival of hot winds from Rajasthan Areas like Mungeshpur, Narela, and Najafgarh are in the frontline and take the first blow of the hot summer westerly or north-westerly blowing in from Rajasthan or Haryana. This is one of the major reasons why it’s so hot there," IMD's senior weather scientist told Times of India.
Experts also believe northwest Delhi is the first to experience the hot winds from Rajasthan and Haryana, contributing to its higher temperature.
The region's landscape, including large open spaces, barren land, and industrial areas, also plays a significant role in the extreme heat.
"Look at the larger land use at theselocations. Sometimes, despite plantations, there are patches of barren land, say open ploughed fields, that result in an increase in the land surface temperature," the executive director of Centre for Science and Earth Animita Roy Chowdhury told Times of India.
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Life In Mungeshpur
Residents of Mungeshpur and nearby areas expressed their struggles with the heat. Some of the villagers complained about air conditioners failing to cool rooms and the hot nights depriving them of sleep.
"Air conditioners fail to cool the room, the nights are hot and deprives us of proper sleep," a resident of Mungeshpur named Sanjay Sherawat told Times of India.
"There is no way I can stand there for more than 15 minutes. Most farmers have also stopped planting the next crop, which is jowar, because it’s unlikely to survive in this heat," a local farmer named Ashok Kumar told Hindustan Times.
"In this heat, can you imagine how difficult it is to survive without water? It’s one of the reasons farmers are not going out onto their fields. Even if they do, there is not enough water for the crops to survive," another person told Hindustan Times.