Keeps winter chill away from Hyderabad

Hyderabad: Rather than bracing for the nip in the air and pulling out woollens from the closet, the city’s residents have been using fans on full speed. This, experts say, is a sure sign that winter has given the city a miss.

IMD officials say there is no dip in the temperature that continues to hover between 18ºC and 20ºC. “Usually by this time of the year there are northerly winds that blow over the state,” Dr K. Nagaratna, IMD Hyderabad director, said. “Since they originate from the Himalayas, they are cold. But all we are getting is warm and humid winds from the eastern side — the Bay of Bengal.”

Records show that winters have given the city a miss this year. This points towards an unnatural heating of the city’s landmass, say meteorologists.

Reacting to the mild winter, the city has taken to microblogging websites to vent their frustration. “In my defense I LOVE sweaters but Hyderabad hates winters (sic)”, says “Madhu”.

Officials have attributed the missing winter to man-made anomalies like increased pollution.

“Vehicles in the city are multiplying by the day,” she said. “Carbon emissions are rising, giving way to a greenhouse effect over the city. This is trapping the heat.”

Conversely, there are parts of the state like Adilabad and Kumaram-bheem that witnessed an appreciable drop in temperature of 7ºC and 10ºC , respectively. “Since they are in the northern part of the state the temperature drop was bound to happen,” said the IMD director.