Most parts of eastern and central India, the plains in the northwestern part of the country, as well as the north and east peninsula are likely to experience “above-normal” number of heatwave days between April and June, said the India Meteorological Department on Monday.

The weather department also forecast above-normal temperatures in most parts of the country during the summer, reported The Indian Express.

The extended heatwave days will likely last 10 to 11 days in eastern and central India and affect Odisha, Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh in particular.

“Climatologically, heatwaves over these regions can last for four to seven days, but we expect episodes that can prolong to 10-11 days,” Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, director general of the department, was quoted as saying.

The weather agency declares a heatwave for a region when the temperature crosses 40 degrees Celsius in the plains, 37 degrees Celsius in coastal areas and 30 degrees Celsius in the hills.

At the national level, the weather agency calculates the total heatwave days as a culmination of such weather conditions in all 36 meteorological sub-divisions. For instance, a heatwave day, when experienced in five sub-divisions, is counted as five heatwave days.

The states that will be affected by the extended heatwave days during the summer are: Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and northern areas of Karnataka.

“During heatwaves, elevated temperatures pose significant risks, especially for vulnerable populations like the elderly, children and those with pre-existing health conditions, who are more susceptible to heat-related illnesses such as heat exhaustion and heatstroke,” said the weather agency.

It added that prolonged periods of extreme heat can also strain power grids and transportation systems. To address these challenges, the department suggested that residents of states experiencing heatwaves should be provided access to cooling centres and heat advisories should be issued.

The weather agency also noted that normal to above-normal rainfall is likely over parts of northwestern India, peninsular India, northeastern India and some areas in west-central India. Below normal rainfall is likely over the remaining parts of the country.

On March 26, the India Meteorological Department predicted nearly double the number of heatwave days in northwestern India during the summer.

This, however, does not mean that all summer days in the region will have above-normal temperatures, the department said.

In 2024, India witnessed 536 heatwave days, the highest in 14 years. From April to June, around 40% of the country had experienced double the number of heatwave days than usual.

Due to this, the country recorded 40,000 suspected cases of heatstroke and over 100 heat-related deaths during one of its hottest and longest heatwaves.

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