Mint Primer: Will the summer of ’25 break last year’s records?

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Summer’s only just set in, but several states have already seen heatwaves as well as warm nights. The Met department has forecast a spike in mercury in the coming days.

Mint explains the forecasts and the likely impact on the economy and food prices. India officially considers March-May as summer. But this year, Goa and Maharashtra recorded the first heatwave in late February—still winter and a historic first.

The Met defines a heatwave as when the maximum temperature in the plains is at least 40 degrees Celsius or five degrees above normal. In March, parts of Odisha, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana had heatwaves. This February was the hottest in 125 years.

An analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment shows that during 11-23 February, night temperatures were higher than normal by 3-5 degrees at least once in 22 states. The Met says above-normal number of heatwave days are likely over most parts of the country this summer. Night temperatures are also expected to be above normal.

However, it didn’t say if the summer of 2025 will be worse than 2024, which was the warmest on record since 1901. However, experts are expecting up to 10% surge in peak power demand in May. Earlier this month, Boudh in Odisha recorded the season’s highest temperature at 43.6 degrees.

On 24 March, the Met office said the maximum daytime temperatures could rise in the coming days by 2-6 degrees over most parts of India. This year, the early onset of heatwaves seems to have spared wheat-growing regions. However, short-duration vegetable crops may be at risk as temperatures spike in April and May.