New Delhi: India is likely to experience a warmer than usual March with a good number of heat wave days, the weather office said Friday, signalling the start of summer across the country.
Addressing a virtual press conference, D Sivandanda Pai, a senior weather scientist at the India Meteorological Department, said monthly maximum temperatures for March are likely to be above normal over most parts of the country, except some southernmost parts of Peninsular India.
Pai said below normal maximum temperatures were likely in the southern peninsular region.
The prediction for a warmer March comes as the country experienced the warmest February since 1901 with mean temperature of 22.04 degrees Celsius, which was 1.34 degrees above the normal of 20.70 degrees.
Asked about the impact of the warm weather conditions on the rabi crop, Pai said as per his discussions with the experts from the Agriculture ministry nearly 60 per cent of wheat grown in the country was a heat resistant variety.
Rainfall across the country in February was 10.9 mm – 18th lowest since 1901 and the fifth lowest since 2001, Pai said.
He said rainfall over South peninsular India at 1.2 mm was the 10th lowest since 1901 and the fourth lowest since 2001.
“During the upcoming hot weather season (March to May (MAM)), above-normal maximum temperatures are most likely over most parts of the country, except over southern parts of Peninsular India, and isolated pockets of Northeast India where normal to below-normal maximum temperatures are likely,” Pai said.
The weather office said during March to May season 2025, above-normal number of heatwave days are likely over most parts of the country except over northeast India, extreme north India and southwestern and southern parts of Peninsular India.
The rainfall during March 2025 averaged over the country as a whole is most likely to be normal (83-117% of LPA), said IMD.
Pai said the current wet spell in northern parts of the country was on account of an intense Western Disturbance that has brought snowfall and rains to Jammu and Kashmir, parts of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
He said the current wet spell was expected to continue till March 3 and beyond as another Western Disturbance was likely to cross the region next week.
Pai said northern India was expected to experience normal rainfall of the long period average (LPA) for the month of March.
The LPA of rainfall over North India and the country as a whole during March based on data from 1971-2020 is 29.9 mm, Pai said.
PTI
