has been placed under zone of ‘caution’ in the first-ever excess heat factor (EHF) index released recently by theIndia Meteorological Department(IMD) in Delhi.EHFis an experimental exercise to estimate the heat Stress over parts of country during summer on the lines of Australia and the US.
Unlike simple prediction of high temperature, EHF provides an estimate of excess heat stress based on high temperature of the previous 30 days and extreme heat in the last three days over a region. If a region in the index is highlighted in red, it means that the maximum temperature recorded is higher than 45 degree Celsius and there is more stress.
IMD’s first EHF showed that major parts of Telangana, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra,Uttar Pradesh,Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Gujarat,Himachal Pradeshand Uttarakhand are experiencing an increase in excess heat factor. Some parts of Andhra Pradesh are in the red danger zone with a maximum temperature of more than 45 degree Celsius and the EHF data can serve as a warning to citizens to be on the lookout for any Health effects, officials said.
The EHF index is used in Australia, the US and a few other countries.