Intense heat continued to tighten its grip on the city, and the little respite after sundown also seems to be dwindling.Monday brought one of the season’s warmest nights, with the mercury settling at 31.2 degrees Celsius — 4.5 degrees above normal and only the second time this season the minimum has breached the 30-degree mark.The reading meets India Meteorological Department’s definition of a “warm night”, declared when the minimum temperature departs between 4.5°C and 6.4°C above normal during heatwave conditions. A departure beyond 6.4°C earns the grimmer tag of “severe warm night”.The pattern is not an aberration, and night temperatures over the past week have remained stubbornly elevated: 28°C on May 19, 29.8°C on May 20, 32.6°C on May 21, 28.5°C on May 22, 28.6°C on May 23 and 27.5°C on May 24 — a sustained stretch that meteorologists said signals prolonged heat stress.IMD data placed the city among the highest night temperature recordings in Haryana, with the state’s average minimum rising a further 0.9°C from the previous day.The concern with warm nights goes beyond discomfort. Meteorologists warn that elevated overnight temperatures prevent the body from recovering from daytime heat exposure, amplifying the risk of heat-related illness — particularly for children, the elderly and those who work outdoors.City observatories recorded maximum temperatures between 41.6°C and 42.7°C on Monday, as dry weather prevailed across Haryana. Sirsa remained the hottest spot in the state at 46.2°C, with temperatures broadly running up to 3.2°C above normal. IMD has issued a heatwave-to-severe-heatwave warning for several districts, including Gurgaon, through May 27.A few parts of south Haryana also reported unusually high night temperatures — Mandkola in Nuh recorded a minimum temperature of 31.9 degrees Celsius, while Jhajjar recorded 31.4 degrees Celsius and Palwal 31.2 degrees Celsius.Northern districts offered more relief — Rohtak reported the state’s lowest minimum at 23.4°C, followed by Karnal at 25.1°C, Hisar at 25.9°C and Ambala at 27.8°C.Some relief may be in sight. IMD has forecast thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds across parts of Haryana from May 28, which could bring a gradual easing of temperatures.
