The present study analyzed the actual evaporation (E a ) and its components [transpiration (E t ), bare soil evaporation (E b ), interception loss (E i ), and open water evaporation (E o )] data to study the long-term (1980-2018) trends over different meteorological sub-divisions in India. Quantitatively, all India annual E a is 573 mm (σ= 28.8 mm), where E t (µ=455.9 mm; σ= 30.4 mm) plays a major role compared to other evaporation processes like E b (µ=55.9 mm; σ= 8.6 mm), E i (µ=33.5mm; σ= 3.4 mm), and E o (µ=27.2 mm; σ=0.38 mm). The MK test reveals an increasing trend (1.33mm/y) in annual E a due to the rising trend in E t (1.91mm/y) and E i (0.16mm/y) even though there is no signi cant trend in rainfall or potential evaporation (E p ). The sub-division-wise analysis shows the increasing trend in E a observed over irrigated regions located in the south, north-west, and foothills of the Himalayas during pre-monsoon and monsoon season. The correlation analysis observed a complex relationship between E a and climatic factors (rainfall (RF), soil moisture (SM), surface temperature (T), relative humidity (RH), surface shortwave radiation (SSR), and wind speed (WS)) during monsoon season such that the water-limited areas have a positive correlation with SM, RH and RF, and negative correlation with WS, T, and SSR, whereas, in energylimited areas (east India), the Ea showed a positive correlation with SSR & T and negative correlation with RF. The main climatic drivers for the increasing trend of E a are SM & rainfall over dry regions and SSR &T over densely vegetated regions in India.