Pune: Maharashtra woke up to an unusual nip in the air on Tuesday, with several cities recording below-normal minimum temperatures. Rain reduced significantly across the state with single-digit rainfall in many places in ghat areas. Pune is likely to see only very light to light rains for the next few days, said an IMD forecast. Shivajinagar in the city dipped to 18.5°C — the city’s lowest Sept minimum in seven years. The last comparable dip in Pune was on Sept 9, 2018, when the mercury had touched 17.5°C, almost mirroring Tuesday’s date. Nashik reported 17.6°C, the coldest Sept morning in 54 years since 1971. Mahabaleshwar (15.3°C), Malegaon (19°C), Ahmednagar (19.4°C), Jalgaon (22.2°C) and Kolhapur (20.6°C) also reported below-normal minimums. Since 1903, the lowest minimum for Sept in Shivajinagar is 13.2°C, recorded on Sept 21, 1994. Other notable lows include 14.9°C (Sept 25, 2008), 15.1°C (Sept 27, 1964), 16.1°C (Sept 22, 1994), and 16.2°C (Sept 24, 1972). In the last 74 years, the lowest minimum for Sept in Nashik was 16.1°C, recorded on Sept 2, 1952. Other notable lows include 16.6°C (Sept 29, 1962), 16.8°C (Sept 24, 1963), 17.1°C (Sept 13, 1971), and 17.6°C (this Tuesday). India Meteorological Department (IMD) scientist SD Sanap said the dip followed the weakening of a depression that had been lingering over southeast Pakistan. An IMD bulletin stated: “The depression moved southwestwards during the past six hours and is likely to weaken into a well-marked low-pressure area. Its influence over Maharashtra has reduced, paving the way for clear skies.” Sanap added, “Most of the day on Tuesday we had clear skies. Early morning, we saw an almost cloud-free sky in Pune along with sunshine. This caused the long wave radiation to escape directly into the atmosphere, resulting in surface cooling.” Independent weather expert Abhijit Modak told TOI, “The recent cloudy and rainy conditions kept night temperatures up. But now, as the depression has weakened and moved away, dry air has started to flow in. With clear skies, the atmosphere loses heat rapidly at night, leading to a sharp dip in minimum temperatures. This is typical of Sept–Oct climatology in the region,” he said. Modak added that while this drop is not unusual for early Sept, it may persist for another two or three days before conditions normalize.
