Most of the intense rainfall in eastern, east-central and northwest India in August 2026 occurred because of low pressure systems (LPS) / low pressure areas (LPA) from the Bay of Bengal and their interaction with the western disturbances (WD), according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD). There were six LPSs, two of which intensified into depressions, and eight WDs in August, according to data from IMD. August 2026 was also characterised by warmer maximum and minimum temperatures throughout the country.
While rainfall from LPS / LPA is normal during the southwest monsoon season, the number of days on which at least one of these systems was active over some region of the country was much higher than normal in August. The total number of LPS days was 26 compared to a climatological normal of 16.3. The pattern of low pressure areas causing rainfall continued from July when there were 24 LPS days compared with a climatological normal of 13.56.
Western disturbances, on the other hand, are not supposed to occur during the southwest monsoon season. They are extra tropical storms that originate mostly over the Mediterranean region and travel towards northwest India during the winter and spring seasons bringing snowfall for the mountainous regions and rainfall for the plains. Their activity during the monsoon has significantly increased in the past few years, especially in 2025 and 2026.
“The intense rainfall events during the month of August were largely concentrated over eastern, east-central and northwestern India, except over West Rajasthan and Punjab”, as per an IMD presentation during a press conference on August 31, 2026.
“These intense events were largely caused by monsoonal systems, such as low pressure areas/depressions in eastern and east-central India, and by the interaction between the Western Disturbances/westerlies and the the low pressure areas/cyclonic circulations over northwest India,” the weather agency added.
“The low pressure systems moved towards the northwest rather than west and even stalled because of the activity of the westerlies and western disturbances,” said Mrutyunjaya Mohapatra, director-general of IMD, during the press conference.
Even with the intense rainfall over eastern, east-central and northwestern parts of the country, India had a deficit in rainfall of 16.3 per cent in August, according to data from the IMD. The cumulative rainfall deficit from June 1 through August 31 was 13.8 per cent. Some 47 per cent of the districts in the country experienced deficient or large deficient rainfall till August 31.
Northwest India fared better than other regions, with a deficit of 9.5 per cent in August. The region’s seasonal deficit was 10.7 per cent. Southern India experienced 27.1 per cent less rainfall than the normal in August, with a seasonal rainfall deficit of 24.2 per cent.
Central India had made a recovery with 33 per cent excess rainfall in July but suffered from 16.2 per cent less rainfall than normal in August to bring its seasonal deficit to 3.8 per cent. East and northeast India, which is experiencing a below-normal monsoon rainfall, witnessed a 16.9 per cent deficit in rainfall in August, with a seasonal deficit of 25.7 per cent, the highest in the country.
Among states, Meghalaya, also called the ‘Abode of Clouds’, is suffering from the highest deficit rainfall in the country (58 per cent), while the cold desert of Ladakh has the highest seasonal excess rainfall (195 per cent). This pattern in both regions has been consistent through most of the monsoon season of 2026.
Many of the southern states are also suffering from deficit rainfall in the current monsoon season. Andhra Pradesh experienced 42 per cent less rainfall than normal from June 1 through August 31, and Karnataka suffered from rainfall deficit of 23 per cent in the same period. Usually rain-rich Kerala has received 21 per cent less rainfall than normal.
Another major characteristic of August weather throughout India was the higher than normal maximum and minimum temperatures. The average maximum temperature was the fourth highest since 1901 and the average minimum the highest in the past 126 years.