Delhi recorded 185.9 mm rainfall in May 2025 — its highest in over 120 years, breaking the 1901 record. Despite the IMD predicting above-normal monsoon rain for Delhi, Haryana and Chandigarh, experts say the city may not see a repeat of 2024’s 1,029.9 mm total — 62% above normal.
According to IMD data, Delhi had seven heavy rain days from June to September in 2021—the highest in over 60 years. In contrast, there were two heavy rain days in 2023, only one occurred in 2022, with none between 2018 and 2020, showing the fluctuating rainfall trends.
Between 2011 and 2024, Delhi experienced only five very heavy rain days and just one extremely heavy rain day, indicating that such intense rainfall events are uncommon in the city.
Delhi’s typical monsoon arrival is on June 27. However, in 2025, the monsoon arrived early, reaching Kerala on May 24 and Mumbai by May 26, showing faster-than-usual progress this year.
In 2024, Delhi recorded 1,029.9 mm of rain, 62% above the average of 640.4 mm. The city received 660.8 mm in 2023 and 516.9 mm in 2022. The 2021 monsoon was the wettest since 1964, with Safdarjung recording 1,176.4 mm, as reported by Economic Times.
From March 1 to May 30, Delhi saw 103.8 mm of rain—almost double the usual 55.5 mm. This heavy pre-monsoon rainfall put the city in the “large excess” category, with an overall surplus of 87%.
On June 28 last year, Delhi faced extreme rainfall with 228.1 mm in a single day at Safdarjung — the highest June rainfall since 1936. The heavy downpour caused severe waterlogging, traffic jams, uprooted trees, power outages, flight delays and sadly, four deaths.
