BHUBANESWAR/CUTTACK: While the southwest monsoon has gone into a pause, a trough triggered rainfall across interior, northern and some coastal parts of Odisha on Friday, bringing relief from hot and humid conditions.
Cuttack received the highest rainfall of 88.6 mm during the day, followed by Angul (40 mm), Bhadrak (35.4 mm) and Baripada (29.6 mm). Inclement weather in Mayurbhanj forced President Droupadi Murmu to travel to Rairangpur by road.
The state capital also witnessed rainfall in the evening, with temperatures dropping significantly due to the showers and strong winds. The rainfall caused the afternoon temperature of 34 degrees Celsius to plunge by nine degrees to 25 degrees Celsius.
Weather experts attributed the rainfall activity to a trough and said parts of the state may continue to receive rain under its influence over the next 24 hours.
Director of the Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre, Manorama Mohanty, said heavy rainfall is likely at a few places over the next two days, while thunderstorm activity is expected to persist in parts of the state till June 23.
The regional meteorological office has forecast heavy rainfall in Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj and Bhadrak on Saturday, and in Koraput the following day. Mohanty also said conditions are favourable for the further advancement of the southwest monsoon into more parts of Odisha, Jharkhand and Bihar, as well as some parts of Chhattisgarh, within the next three to four days.
Weather experts said rainfall activity may intensify in some parts of the country, including Odisha, from June 23 onwards.
Meanwhile, rain brought misery to Cuttack as residents grappled with waterlogging. The city was virtually brought to its knees by an hour-long downpour in the afternoon.
As residential and market areas were inundated, the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) deployed pump sets at various locations to tackle the situation. Among the worst-affected areas were Jhola Sahi, Choudhury Bazar, Balu Bazar, Odia Bazar, Ganga Mandir, Kazi Bazar, Nandi Sahi, Nua Rausapatna, etc., where overflowing drain water entered several houses.
Residents attributed the situation to poor drainage system and blamed the CMC for negligence in carrying out desilting and drain-cleaning work. “The situation has not only exposed the inefficiency of the civic body but also belied its tall claims of preparedness to prevent waterlogging in the city,” said J Kameswar Rao, corporator of ward no 35.
Mayor Subhash Singh said the civic body had deployed around 200 dewatering pump sets in waterlogged areas and the situation was expected to improve within a few hours.