NEW DELHI: Year 2025 was the eighth warmest year on record in India whereas the 2016-25 period emerged as the warmest decade, the IMD said while releasing its annual climate summary on Thursday. Making a monthly forecast for the current month, it said most regions of the country are likely to experience “below normal” minimum temperatures – it means many parts, specifically the north (Uttar Pradesh), central (east Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and north Maharashtra) and east India (Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand), may have colder nights in Jan.The similar pattern may, however, not be experienced in some parts of northwest (Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh) and northeast India, as well as southern Peninsular India, where both day (max.) and night (min.) temperatures are likely to be ‘above normal’ (warmer).Days may even be warmer in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal as well during Jan after the first few days of the month. Nights will, however, be colder in the entire region during the month, leading to fog formation on many days. IMD also predicted “normal to above normal” rainfall across “most parts” of the country, which is conducive for the standing Rabi (winter sown) crops. Though Punjab, Haryana and other parts of northwest India are likely to get ‘below normal’ showers, it won’t impact the farming operations there due to a fairly good irrigation network and water storage facilities in the region.Releasing the annual climate summary for 2025, director general of the IMD, Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, said the year with recording 0.28 degree Celsius higher than the long-term (1991-2020) average temperature turned out to be “eighth warmest year” since nationwide temperature records began in the country in 1901.“Notably, 10 of the 15 warmest years in India have occurred during the recent 15-year period (2011-25),” he said, underlining that the year 2024 was the warmest year on record with reporting 0.65 degree C above the long-term average temperature.Last year’s winter was not as severe as what may be experienced this year. It was clearly reflected from the temperature anomaly of Jan and Feb of 2025. Feb last year recorded the “highest monthly mean temperature ever” for the country whereas Jan marked the “second highest” on record since 1901.IMD data shows the extreme weather events led to 2,763 deaths in 2025 with Uttar Pradesh recording the highest such casualties followed by Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Bihar. Floods and heavy rains took the highest toll of 1,372 followed by lightning & thunderstorms that took 1,317 lives.As far as the global average temperature in 2025 was concerned, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) recently noted that the year is set to be either the second or third warmest year on record. So far, 2024 was the warmest year on record globally followed by 2023, the previous warmest. Both these years along with 2025 may, therefore, now be the three warmest years on record.Mohapatra attributed a virtually dry Dec 2025 to the absence of western disturbances that bring rains and thunderstorms to the northwest and central India. “The western disturbances are either moving towards north or moving too fast,” he said, attributing the change in pattern to climate change. Go to Source
