Delayed Winter Onset in India: La Niña Expected to Bring Colder Than Normal Winters in 2025-2026

Strategic Insights -

La Niña, a climate pattern characterized by cooler-than-normal Pacific Ocean surface temperatures, is expected to bring a colder and more severe-than-normal winter in India for 2025-2026. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecasted below-average minimum temperatures in regions such as the Indo-Gangetic plains, Delhi, Punjab, and Haryana, with cold waves that could be 3-5°C lower than normal. The Himalayan region, including Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, is likely to experience heavier snowfall than usual, with early signs of this already visible.

Key Takeaways:

  • La Niña is expected to cause a colder and more severe-than-normal winter in India for 2025-2026, according to forecasts from the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and other weather agencies.
  • The Indo-Gangetic plains, Delhi, Punjab, and Haryana are forecast to experience below-average minimum temperatures, with cold waves that could be 3-5°C lower than normal.
  • The Himalayan region, including Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, is likely to experience heavier snowfall than usual.
  • Thicker and more extended fog episodes are also likely in the plains, which can worsen air quality by trapping pollutants.
  • La Niña is a climate pattern where the Pacific Ocean's surface temperatures become cooler than normal, altering atmospheric circulation and affecting India's winter climate.
  • A stronger-than-usual circulation pattern will push cold air from the Central Asia region southward into India, leading to intensifying cold waves.
  • La Niña can also affect the frequency and intensity of Western Disturbances, storm systems that bring winter rain and snow to North India.

Statistics:

  • 3-5°C: expected decrease in minimum temperatures in regions such as the Indo-Gangetic plains, Delhi, Punjab, and Haryana.
  • 2025-2026: forecasted period for a colder and more severe-than-normal winter in India.
  • 3-5 cm: expected increase in snowfall in the Himalayan region.
  • 15-20 km: expected extent of fog episodes in the plains.

Sources:

  • "India Meteorological Department"
  • Contify.com
  • Omega Printers & Publishers Pvt Ltd