1. Gangtok recorded a scorching 26.8°C on September 23, the hottest September day since 1969.
2. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) confirmed this record-breaking heat.
3. Gangtok has seen 11 days this month with temperatures exceeding 25°C.
Gangtok, Sept 25: On September 23, Gangtok experienced a record-breaking temperature of 26.8 degrees Celsius, marking the hottest September day in Sikkim since 1969, according to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).
Gopinath Raha, head of IMD Gangtok, stated, “This month, particularly in the last week, temperatures have surged by 3-6 degrees Celsius above the normal for September. From our data spanning 1969 to 2024, this is officially the hottest September on record in Sikkim, with an average monthly temperature of 24 degrees Celsius, an unprecedented figure.”
Throughout the month, Gangtok has faced 11 days with temperatures surpassing 25 degrees Celsius.
From September 6 to 13, and again from September 18 to 23, temperatures remained consistently above 24 degrees.
In Tadong, located 1,500 feet downhill from Gangtok, temperatures soared to 33.1 degrees Celsius on September 21, the highest September reading recorded there. This heatwave has also extended to Darjeeling, which hit 28.2 degrees Celsius on the same day.
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Despite the extreme heat, Raha predicts some relief starting September 24, with temperatures expected to cool down due to a cyclonic circulation in the Bay of Bengal, possibly bringing rain and thunderstorms.
Sikkim’s monsoon season, typically lasting from late May to September 30, has seen irregular patterns in recent years.
While June witnessed normal rainfall, July recorded an 18% increase, and the first two months of the monsoon saw a 66% surge in rains.
However, there has been a deficit since July, with only a 9% increase over normal levels.
Additionally, Sikkim’s weather is further complicated by non-monsoonal rainfall, often influenced by western disturbances.
These disturbances, however, are shifting northward, adding further complexity to the region’s climate patterns.
