The first half of May this year has been cooler than April in Delhi, something that hasn’t happened in at least 15 years, according to data from Safdarjung weather station.
Normally, May is hotter than April. On average, the maximum temperature in the first half of May is about 3 degrees Celsius higher than April. May is usually the hottest month of the year in Delhi. But this year, the average maximum temperature from May 1 to 15 was 36.7 degrees Celsius, nearly 3 degrees below the normal 39.4 degrees. Meanwhile, April was warmer than usual, with an average maximum temperature of 39 degrees Celsius, higher than April’s normal of 36.5 degrees.
This May’s cooler weather is the second coolest first half of May since 2011. Only 2023 had a cooler start to May, with an average maximum of 36 degrees Celsius. However, last year’s cooler May followed a cool April, unlike this year when April was hotter.
Since 2011, every year except 2025 has seen May’s first half hotter than April. The smallest difference was in 2022, when April’s average maximum was 40.4 degrees Celsius and May’s was just slightly higher at 40.6 degrees. The biggest difference was in 2015, when April was pleasant at 34.5 degrees but May’s first half soared to 39.8 degrees.
Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, chief of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), said the unusual cooler May is due to more rainfall in May compared to a dry April. “May temperatures being lower than April is unusual but is part of natural weather variation. The main reason is higher rainfall in May so far, compared to dry conditions in April,” he explained.
Delhi has seen at least four days of thunderstorms in May, with Safdarjung recording 91.4mm of rain, the highest for the first half of May in at least 15 years. By comparison, April had only 0.7mm of rain on a single day (April 12). The IMD had forecast higher-than-normal rainfall in May and hotter temperatures, but so far the heat prediction has not come true.
However, Mohapatra warned that heatwave conditions are likely to develop in northwest India around May 23. He said, “A vortex is expected to form in the Arabian Sea around that time. Since it will coincide with the likely start of the monsoon, we expect it to grow into a cyclone. If it moves northwest, north India will dry up and temperatures will rise.”
The cooler weather has also helped save energy. Normally, power demand rises sharply in May due to heat, but this month the average demand in Delhi has been 4,670 megawatts, which is even lower than the 4,751 MW demand seen in the second half of April.
Inputs from TOI
Normally, May is hotter than April. On average, the maximum temperature in the first half of May is about 3 degrees Celsius higher than April. May is usually the hottest month of the year in Delhi. But this year, the average maximum temperature from May 1 to 15 was 36.7 degrees Celsius, nearly 3 degrees below the normal 39.4 degrees. Meanwhile, April was warmer than usual, with an average maximum temperature of 39 degrees Celsius, higher than April’s normal of 36.5 degrees.
This May’s cooler weather is the second coolest first half of May since 2011. Only 2023 had a cooler start to May, with an average maximum of 36 degrees Celsius. However, last year’s cooler May followed a cool April, unlike this year when April was hotter.
Since 2011, every year except 2025 has seen May’s first half hotter than April. The smallest difference was in 2022, when April’s average maximum was 40.4 degrees Celsius and May’s was just slightly higher at 40.6 degrees. The biggest difference was in 2015, when April was pleasant at 34.5 degrees but May’s first half soared to 39.8 degrees.
Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, chief of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), said the unusual cooler May is due to more rainfall in May compared to a dry April. “May temperatures being lower than April is unusual but is part of natural weather variation. The main reason is higher rainfall in May so far, compared to dry conditions in April,” he explained.
Delhi has seen at least four days of thunderstorms in May, with Safdarjung recording 91.4mm of rain, the highest for the first half of May in at least 15 years. By comparison, April had only 0.7mm of rain on a single day (April 12). The IMD had forecast higher-than-normal rainfall in May and hotter temperatures, but so far the heat prediction has not come true.
However, Mohapatra warned that heatwave conditions are likely to develop in northwest India around May 23. He said, “A vortex is expected to form in the Arabian Sea around that time. Since it will coincide with the likely start of the monsoon, we expect it to grow into a cyclone. If it moves northwest, north India will dry up and temperatures will rise.”
The cooler weather has also helped save energy. Normally, power demand rises sharply in May due to heat, but this month the average demand in Delhi has been 4,670 megawatts, which is even lower than the 4,751 MW demand seen in the second half of April.
Inputs from TOI
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