India, March 19 -- With temperatures rising in the country, the heatwaves arrived in February and warm nights too have been recorded far earlier than in the last few years.

On February 25, 2025, Goa and Maharashtra recorded India's first heatwave of the year, marking the first time a heatwave has occurred during winter season (January-February) as defined by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

IMD also confirmed that February 2025 was the hottest February in 125 years.

Data from Down to Earth (DTE)'s interactive atlas on extreme weather events highlights that Odisha and Jharkhand experienced their earliest heatwaves in four years.

Year Odisha Jharkhand 2025 March 15 March 18 2024 April 5 April 5 2023 April 14 April 18 2022 ...