The climate of West Bengal is varied, with tropical savanna in the southern portions of the state, to humid subtropical areas in the north. Temperatures vary widely, and there are five distinct seasons. The area is vulnerable to heavy rainfall, monsoons, and cyclones. There are some mountains in the area which are generally cold all year round. Seasons There are five main seasons in West Bengal: spring, summer, rainy season, a short autumn, and winter. Spring Spring is considered the most pleasant season over the plains of West Bengal and lies from mid-February to mid-March and is also the time where Holi is celebrated. Temperatures range between 20 °C – 30 °C and no rainfall. Though occasional rain or light showers are witnessed due to Western disturbances in North India. Summer The summer season is observed from March to May in most of Bengal. Temperature In Bengal, summers can be extremely hot and have high humidity. The plains of South Bengal have a daily maximum temperature around 35–38 °C. It can also exceed 40 °C. The western highlands experience a dry summer like northern India. During the day, the temperature ranges from 38 to 42 °C, though it can reach or exceed 45 °C. In summer, the plains of North Bengal are generally cooler than the west and south. In this area, the daily maximum temperature varies from 26 to 32 °C. It occasionally crosses 35 °C. The minimum temperature in summer is approximately 18–22 °C. The Darjeeling hill region is the coolest area in summer. Here, the daily highest temperature is 15–25 °C. Rainfall Monsoons Period In mid-June, the monsoon season starts. It continues until the end of September. Temperature In most places, the temperature drops as cloud cover increases. This is less true for the mountains and the Terai Dooars plains, where temperature gradually increases until August. The maximum temperature of South Bengal's plains and western highlands is 32 °C, 31 °C in North Bengal plains and around 19–20 °C in mountains. Sometimes when the sky gets clear, the temperature rises suddenly. This is known as a monsoon break. This occurs mostly in North Bengal plains and in mountains in July and August when the temperature soars over 36 °C and 24 °C respectively. Rainfall Most of the annual rainfall occurs during the monsoon period. Heavy rainfall above 250 cm is observed in the Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and