The Meteorological Department said on Monday that the increase in maximum temperature will not have any impact on the prepared wheat crop. India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General Mrityunjay Mahapatra said that during the period from April to June, there will be extreme heat in the country, the worst impact of which is likely to be on the central and western peninsular parts.
However, there is no heat wave warning for wheat producing states except Madhya Pradesh, he said. “Currently the temperature in Madhya Pradesh is around 37-40 degrees Celsius and it is likely to reach 42 degrees Celsius next week. Since 90 per cent of wheat harvesting has been completed in the state, there will be no impact,” Mohapatra said.
He said that even if the temperature goes above 35 degrees Celsius, there will be no impact in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. The initial impact of the heat wave in 2022 affected wheat production in India, forcing the world’s second largest wheat producing country to ban exports.
Maximum temperatures are likely to rise gradually by 2-3 degrees Celsius over many parts of the country during the next week.