Finance
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a yellow warning on Saturday for thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty surface winds in several districts of Odisha over the next few days as a low-pressure area persists over the southwest and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal.
According to the IMD’s Meteorological Centre in Bhubaneswar’s Evening Weather Bulletin, light to moderate rain or thundershowers are expected in a few districts, including Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam, Gajapati, Sonepur, Boudh, Nuapada, Balangir, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Koraput, and Malkangiri, until Sunday morning.
The IMD has warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning and gusty surface winds reaching speeds of 40-50 kmph at isolated places over Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam, Gajapati, Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Bargarh, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Nuapada, Balangir, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri districts. Winds of 30-40 kmph are also likely in Sonepur, Boudh, Angul, Dhenkanal, Sambalpur and Deogarh districts.
According to the weather agency, thunderstorm activity is expected to persist until at least May 21, particularly in the state’s northern, coastal, and southern districts. Similar yellow warnings have been issued for other districts, including Balasore, Bhadrak, Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri, and Mayurbhanj, from May 17 to 21.
According to the bulletin, the low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal remained in place Saturday afternoon, with cyclonic circulation extending up to 4.5 km above mean sea level.
Meanwhile, the southwest monsoon has moved into areas of the southeast Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal, and Andaman Sea, and it is expected to move even further during the next three to four days. The IMD said the monsoon is likely to set in over Kerala around May 26, with a model error margin of plus or minus four days.
Several areas in western Odisha continued to report high temperatures on Saturday. Hirakud had the state’s greatest maximum temperature at 41.5 degrees Celsius, followed by Jharsuguda and Sambalpur at 41.4 degrees Celsius each, Angul at 41.1 degrees Celsius, and Bhawanipatna at 41 degrees Celsius. Bhubaneswar registered 37.8 degrees Celsius.
The IMD predicts no significant change in daytime temperatures over the next two days, followed by a steady rise of 2-3 degrees Celsius over the following days throughout Odisha.
