IMD Warns of Longer Heatwaves, Warm Nights Across India in April–June

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned that the weather could be a mix of warm nights across the country and hotter than normal days in the eastern, northeastern, and northernmost regions, along with longer than normal heat waves between April and June 2026.

The IMD's seasonal weather forecast is a little different from the one they gave for March to May at the end of February. The forecast for March to May said that the highest and lowest temperatures in India would be higher than usual.

In the April-June outlook, the weather agency has predicted normal to below normal maximum temperatures for large parts of north, northwest, central and south India, especially towards the western side of the country. The daytime temperatures could be above normal for most of eastern, north-eastern and some parts of eastern south India.

The night-time or minimum temperatures for most of the country, except some parts of central India could be above normal. This prediction has not changed much from the earlier prediction for March till May.

The press release published by IMD further revealed that a higher than normal number of heatwave days is expected for many parts of the country between March-May and a similar trend is predicted for April to June as well. A key difference between the two periods is is that April to June may see more heatwave days than March to May.

Many parts of the country could receive above normal rainfall in April except regions in the east such as West Bengal and in the Northeast, such as Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur and Mizoram.

The eastern and north-eastern states received higher than normal rainfall in March, even though IMD had predicted normal and below normal rainfall for these regions in its March-May seasonal forecast.

“During April 2026, above-normal heatwave days are likely over many parts of coastal areas of Odisha, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh and isolated regions of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka,” stated the IMD press release.

Heatwave Risks Intensify Nationwide

The increased likelihood of heatwave conditions may pose significant risks to public health, water resources, power demand and essential services, particularly affecting vulnerable populations such as the elderly, children, outdoor workers, and individuals with pre-existing medical conditions, mentioned IMD in its press release.

“Elevated temperatures can lead to heat-related illnesses and additional stress on infrastructure and resource management systems,” the met department added. The IMD also made a list of how the above-average temperatures and heat waves would affect farming across the country in April.

“Significant heat stress during reproductive stages of Boro rice, maize, green gram, black gram and vegetables (tomato, chilli, brinjal), leading to poor grain setting, flower drop and reduced yields in east and northeast India, northwest India and southern peninsular India,” as per IMD’s press statement.