(Bloomberg) — Most parts of India will witness hotter-than-usual weather through June, raising the risk of water shortages and more strain on the power network as people turn to air conditioners to find reprieve from searing heat.
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Several areas in the country are likely to experience more heat wave days than normal during three months through June, Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, director general of the India Meteorological Department, said in New Delhi on Monday. Maximum temperatures will likely be higher than normal in April too, he said.
The prediction follows a warmer-than-normal March, raising the risk of some damage to wheat crops that are being harvested now. Any decline in production could prompt the government to cut or scrap the 40% import duty on the food grain. India has curbed exports since 2022 when the hottest March in more than a century hit output and forced the government to introduce restrictions to control food prices.
Rising temperatures will also boost consumption of coal by power plants to avoid blackouts in the world’s most populous country. Continuous electricity supply is crucial to provide respite from heat and equip hospitals to deal with rising cases of heat exhaustion.
Policymakers are bracing for a record peak electricity demand this summer. The government has asked power plant operators to avoid maintenance shutdowns during the season. The authorities can draw comfort from a 16% rise in coal stockpiles at power stations from a year earlier, still efforts are afoot to ensure supplies are well distributed across different regions.
Peak power demand is seen rising to 270 gigawatts this year, beating the previous all-time high of 250 gigawatts last year, according to government estimates.
India may also see a rise in demand for diesel as higher temperatures tend to prompt people to travel to cooler mountains from the plains. The use of diesel-fired generators also increases as some areas face blackouts.
–With assistance from Rakesh Sharma and Bhuma Shrivastava.
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