Bengaluru experienced its driest April in forty years as pre-monsoon showers remained absent, with the India Meteorological Department's observatory reporting zero millimeters of rainfall throughout the month. This lack of rain hasn't been seen since 1983, as every April since then has typically seen some amount of rainfall.

IMd Officials said “In 1983, we did not record any rain in April. Since then, we have had rain/light rainfall in April. After 1983, this is the first year when we have not had any rainfall, making this April the driest in the last 41 years.”

Some areas of Bengaluru saw a light drizzle on April 19 and 20, marking the first rainfall of 2024. However, according to the IMD's observation data at 5:30 p.m. on April 19, three key stations in the city—Bengaluru City, Kempegowda International Airport, and HAL airport—reported no rainfall, with a similar pattern on April 20 where Bengaluru city noted 0 mm of rainfall, while the other two stations recorded trace amounts (less than 0.2 mm).

According to the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre's (KSNDMC) classification, rainfall is considered normal when it ranges between +19% and -19%. A deficient rainfall falls between -20% and -59%, while a large deficient category is when it is -60% or less. On the other hand, excess rainfall ranges from +20% to +59%, and large excess is when it is +60% and above.

During the period from April 1 to 30, according to data from the KSNDMC 12 districts, including Bengaluru Urban, experienced a significant shortfall in rainfall. These districts are Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, Chikkaballapur, Tumakuru, Chitradurga, Ballari, Hassan, Kodagu, Mandya, Mysuru, Chamarajanagar, and Ramanagara. Remaining eight districts had a deficit in rainfall, eight districts received normal rainfall, and two districts received excess rainfall.

Bengaluru's last significant rainfall, approximately 106.6 mm, was noted in November 2023. Since then, there hasn't been any noteworthy rainfall, leading to a noticeable increase in temperatures. The city recently experienced its second-hottest day in at least 50 years, with the mercury reaching 38.5 degrees Celsius. The highest temperature recorded in the past five decades was in April 2016, at 39.2 degrees Celsius.

Here are the highest recorded temperatures for April in Bengaluru:

  1. The highest temperature was on April 24, 2016, at 39.2 degrees Celsius.
  2. The second-highest temperature occurred on April 28, 2024, reaching 38.5 degrees Celsius.
  3. The third-highest temperature was noted on April 30, 1931, at 38.3 degrees Celsius.
  4. Lastly, on April 30, 2024, the temperature reached 38.2 degrees Celsius, making it the fourth-highest recorded for April in Bengaluru.

Residents of Bengaluru are not expected to experience relief from the current heatwave-like conditions anytime soon. The Indian Meteorological Department forecasts that there will be no significant changes in the city's temperatures in the coming days, with both maximum and minimum temperatures expected to hover around 38 degrees Celsius and experience a heatwave from 1st to 4th May.

You might also be interested in - IISc Bengaluru develops synthetic compound that could aid in development of cancer vaccine