India records all-time high power demand amid heat wave

The scorching heat wave conditions across the country on Tuesday led to an all-time high peak-hour power demand of 260.45 GW, mainly due to increased use of air-conditioners and desert coolers. Furnishing this data, the power ministry has also projected that the demand would reach 270 GW this summer as temperatures will continue to soar for the next few days. Notably, India continued to dominate the global heat chart in a striking way on Tuesday afternoon.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) data show the continuation of the heatwave in large parts of northwest and central India, as the mercury touched the 44-46 degrees mark in many places on Tuesday. The northwest and central India, including Delhi-NCR, are now experiencing “peak summer” conditions as temperatures continue to rise relentlessly across the national Capital. Banda in Uttar Pradesh recorded 48.2 degrees Celsius, the highest in this summer season, while Amravati recorded a blistering 46.8 degrees Celsius.

According to AQI. in’s live temperature rankings at around 2:30 pm, all of the world’s top 100 hottest cities were still located in India, underlining the intensity and spread of the ongoing heatwave across the country. The updated rankings showed temperatures rising further through the afternoon, with even the cities at the bottom of the top 100 list recording a scorching 44 degrees Celsius. A massive number of cities were clustered in the 46°C bracket by afternoon, including Banda, Bathinda, Pathankot, Bareilly, Jhansi, Kaithal and Haridwar.

The NCR has experienced its hottest day in the last two years. According to the India Meteorological Department’s data, among several stations, Ridge recorded the maximum temperature at 46.5 degrees Celsius, making it the hottest location in Delhi during the day. Safdarjung and Palam registered 45.1 degrees Celsius. Additionally, the minimum temperatures remained elevated between 27 degrees Celsius and 28.2 degree Celsius across the Capital city, leading to discomfort at night.

Delhi’s electricity demand has surged to a new high of 7,776 MW at 3:30 PM on May 19, 2026, according to State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC) data. This comes just a day after demand touched 7,542 MW and later rose to 7,600 MW at night, showing how rapidly consumption is climbing. According to the IMD, severe heat wave conditions will continue in most of the country for the next few days.

India’s electricity demand surged to a record high on Tuesday as scorching temperatures drove up the use of cooling appliances like air conditioners. Peak demand touched a record 260 Gigawatts (GW) during daytime on Tuesday, surpassing yesterday’s peak demand.

“Today, the peak power demand (solar hours) of 260.45 GW was met successfully at 15:40 hrs. This is a new high surpassing Monday’s peak demand (solar hours) of 257.37 GW, which was also successfully met,” the Ministry of Power said in a post on social media platform X. The ministry also stated that Yesterday (Monday) at 15:42 hours, the peak power demand of 257.37 GW was met without any shortfall.

This peak demand was a new high, surpassing the previous record of 256.1 GW, which was met on April 25, 2026, it said. Monday’s peak demand eclipsed the previous all-time high of 256.11 GW recorded on April 25 at 1538 hrs. The power ministry has projected that the peak power demand would reach 270 GW this summer.

The city experienced its hottest day this summer, with the maximum temperature soaring to 45.1 degrees Celsius. The maximum temperature on Monday was recorded at 43.4 degrees Celsius, the second-highest this summer. The searing heat wave in the national Capital saw the highest surge in power demand, clocking 7,776 MW this year, and the Discoms successfully met the peak hour demand in their respective areas.  The power demand is expected to touch 9,000 MW as compared to 8, 656 MW last year. Delhi’s peak power demand has seen a sharp rise in May compared to previous years, reflecting the impact of an intense and early summer.

The country’s peak power demand has risen with temperatures from April onwards and further intensified in May. Last summer, the peak power demand was 242.77 GW, recorded in June, 2025, but stayed below the Government’s estimate of 277 GW. In May 2024, the peak power demand reached 250 GW, a record at that time and exceeding the previous all-time peak of 243.27 GW set in September 2023.