BHUBANESWAR: The south-west monsoon has covered the whole of Odisha on Monday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said, predicting heavy rainfall in parts of the State for the next four days. The rains have brought much needed relief to the farmers and the people of Odisha. The State had recorded 80 per cent deficit rainfall between June 1 and 14, but the recent showers have reduced the shortage till date to 48 per cent.
Weather experts are of the opinion that if the State continues to receive showers in the next 10 days then the rainfall for this month will be close to normal. The south-west monsoon usually advances towards Odisha on June 11 and covers the entire State within four to five days. The State’s normal rainfall for June is 217.7 mm.
“Heavy rainfall will occur in a few parts of Odisha between Tuesday and Friday. On Tuesday, heavy rainfall is expected at one or two places in Khurda, Puri, Cuttack, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Balasore, Bhadrak and six other districts,” said Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre scientist, Umasankar Das.
Thunderstorm with lightning is likely to occur at one or two places in Nayagarh, Khurda, Puri, Cuttack, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Balasore, Bhadrak, Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Bargarh, Sambalpur and seven other districts during the same period. In the last 24 hours ending at 8.30 am on Monday, Karanjia and Banki recorded maximum rainfall of 170 mm each, while Udala, Balasore and Boudh received 80 mm rainfall each. Between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm on Monday, Boudh received maximum rainfall of 109 mm, followed by 75.7 mm in Paradip. Bhubaneswar recorded 10.9 mm of rain.