Climate News

India's heat season arrives early: 44.4C in Allahabad and heatwave alerts across the north

After a mild start to April, heat has spread quickly across India. On 15 April Business Today reported that the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued heatwave warnings for parts of central and eastern India, with Nagpur, Bhopal, Amravati and Bhubaneswar expected to reach 42–45C and Delhi-NCR set to pass 40C for the first time this season. The outlet said early April had been kept cool by western disturbances, and pointed to a "potentially hotter summer than the record one in 2024".

Two days later Dynamite News reported a heatwave alert for several districts of Maharashtra, with Akola in Vidarbha close to 44C. By 21 April, the news agency ANI, published by WebIndia123, said maximums of 40–45C had been recorded across much of Vidarbha, Marathwada, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh, with the highest reading, 44.4C, at Allahabad. Heatwave conditions were expected in Punjab and Haryana for four days and in eastern Uttar Pradesh for five.

"Delhi is expected to record 40-42 Degrees Celsius today." — Akhil Srivastava, IMD scientist, via ANI

How each outlet framed it

• Business Today — the seasonal outlook: more heatwave days than normal from April to June, and a summer that could beat 2024.
• Dynamite News — the local picture in Maharashtra, with Akola among the country's hottest places.
• WebIndia123 (ANI) — the official map: which states face heatwave and warm-night alerts, and for how long.

What we don't know yet: whether the heat will peak in late April or keep building into May, and whether this summer will in fact overtake 2024. The IMD's seasonal outlook only says heatwave days are likely to be above normal.