Monsoon covers all 30 districts of Odisha: Met

Bhubaneswar: The south-west monsoon further advanced in Odisha on Saturday covering all the 30 districts of the state, the Meteorological Centre here said.

Having made an onset over Odisha on Thursday as per IMD forecast, the south-west monsoon had advanced into most parts of the state on Friday triggering rainfall in many areas except around six districts, it said.

“As the conditions were favourable for its further movement, the south-west monsoon has advanced into the remaining parts of Odisha today, and thus it has now covered the entire state,” a MeT official said.

The monsoon has now covered all the 30 districts of including the whole of Bargarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Sambalpur, Keonjhar, and Mayurbhanj districts which were left untouched by it till Friday.

The movement of the monsoon was facilitated to a great extent by a low pressure area formed over east-central Bay of Bengal, he said, adding the low pressure was linked to the movement of south-west monsoon in the region.

As per the IMD forecast, the monsoon, which marks the commencement of the four-month-long rainy season, is likely to be normal (around 103 per cent) over central India, where Odisha is located. Farming activities are expected to get a boost with normal monsoon rain.

Meanwhile, the low pressure area over north coastal Andhra Pradesh and adjoining coastal Odisha and neighbourhood has become less marked, he said.

However, the associated cyclonic circulation now lies over north Interior Odisha and neighbourhood and extends up to 7.6 km above mean sea level, tilting southwestwards with height.

A trough at mean sea level runs from northwest Rajasthan to north Interior Odisha across north Madhya Pradesh and North Chhattisgarh and extends up to 1.5 km above mean sea level.

Light to moderate rain or thundershower is likely to occur at most places over the districts of north interior Odisha and at many places in Odisha with isolated heavy rainfall over the districts of Bolangir, Kalahandi, Sonepur, Bargarh, Nuapada, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda and Sundargarh during next 24 hours, the MeT Centre said.

Under the influence of monsoon flow, light to moderate rain or thundershower at many places with isolated heavy rainfall is likely to continue over the districts of Odisha in the subsequent four days, it said.

(PTI)