Even as the people in Odisha are eagerly waiting for the arrival of southwest monsoon to get respite from the scorching heat and humid conditions prevailing for the past few weeks, their wait is likely to get a little longer. This year the southwest monsoon reached Kerala on June 8 after a delay of almost seven days.
The monsoon has also advanced into some parts of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, informed the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday.
In an exclusive interview, IMD DG Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said that the southwest monsoon is likely to further advance in more parts of the country including Bay of Bengal and Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Sikkim in the next 48 hours. Moreover, the low pressure area over Northeast Bay of Bengal has become well-marked and monsoon is active there. The advancement of monsoon is likely in the next 24 hours and it will gradually move towards Central India.
According to Mohapatra, the southwest monsoon usually sets in around June 12 in Odisha.
“There could be some delay in the onset of monsoon in Odisha and it is expected to arrive in the state by June 15 or later. The exact date on the onset of monsoon over Odisha has not been announced yet,” Mohapatra said.