From extended hours for Atal Bridge, parks, and promenades along the riverfront, to Voting Day (7th May) declared a public holiday, to water sprinklers installed at Kankaria's Pushpakunj Crossroad and much more. Find what's happening in the city with this Ahmedabad News Roundup.

For the summer season, several parks including Flower Park, Usmanpura Park, B.J. Park, Subhash Bridge Park, and Children's Park, along with Atal Bridge and lower promenade on both East and West sides, will extend their visiting hours until 11 pm until July 15. Tickets for park entry will be available until 10 pm.

Notably drinking water will be provided at all the gardens to cope with the heat.

Voting for the Lok Sabha General Election 2024 in Gujarat is scheduled for 7th May 2024 and hence the state has declared a public holiday on that day.

Furthermore, under the leadership of the District Election Officer and Collector, extensive preparations have been made to ensure a free, fair, and impartial Election in the district. EVMs have been allocated for 21 assembly constituencies and 5 parliamentary constituencies, with distribution operations commencing on Monday.

In an innovative move, AMC has installed water sprinklers next to CCTV cameras at traffic signal junctions. The initial installation on Kankaria's Pushpakunj Cross Road aims to provide cooling relief to motorists during peak hours.

If successful, this project will be expanded to other junctions across the city.

On Monday, temperatures soared to 40 degrees Celsius for the first time in April. The Meteorological Department forecasts a further increase in temperature from Tuesday, with the mercury potentially reaching 41-42 degrees Celsius. Compared to Sunday, the maximum temperature of the city saw a rise of 1.2 degrees Celsius.

During April-June, there can be up to 28 days of yellow alert and 13 days of orange alert due to high temperatures.

Ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr, Ahmedabad's textile market is experiencing heightened demand. Despite initial concerns over the MSME 45-day payment rule, the market remains bullish. With the festival season approaching, retail demand has surged, indicating a prosperous period for the textile industry.

In response to changing climate patterns, the municipality is revamping its heat alert system. A new model is being developed based on factors like temperature variation and mortality rates. Unlike the previous model, which relied solely on maximum temperature, this updated system will provide more nuanced alerts.

With predictions indicating severe heat in April and May, this initiative aims to better prepare residents for extreme weather conditions.