Overview
- The national grid recorded an all‑time peak power demand of 260.45 GW on Tuesday afternoon and authorities say the system met that load without major supply shortfalls.
- The India Meteorological Department has kept orange and red heat alerts active for large parts of northwest and central India and warns heatwave to severe heatwave conditions will continue for several days.
- Temperatures have hit extreme highs in many places with Banda, Uttar Pradesh near 48°C and Faridkot, Punjab around 47°C, producing very warm nights that increase heat‑stress risk.
- Hospitals report a growing number of heat‑related cases and states have opened cooling wards, temporary shelters and water distribution points while one child in Indore died after being found unconscious in a car and a post‑mortem is pending.
- The heat is linked to anticyclonic circulation, dry westerly winds and an emerging El Niño pattern, and the southwest monsoon is forecast to reach Kerala around May 26 which may bring regional relief but not immediate cooling for the worst‑hit northern plains.