India records 3rd-warmest October as El Nino boosts temperatures
October was unusually hot across India this year: average temperatures hit 26.6 degrees Celsius, making it the third-warmest October since 1901.
The El Nino effect played a big role, pushing daytime highs to nearly 32.4 degrees Celsius.
The southern peninsula saw more pronounced warming and recorded its five warmest Octobers in the last 15 years, according to the IMD.
October rainfall nearly 31% short
Even with all that heat, rainfall fell short by nearly 31% last month. Cyclone Arnab brought heavy rain to Andhra Pradesh at the end of October but didn't make up for the overall deficit.
Looking ahead, most regions can expect warmer-than-normal weather in November (except some parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, as well as Himachal Pradesh), plus another cyclone is forming in the Bay of Bengal and could hit the southern Andhra coast soon.