BHUBANESWAR: As Odisha is gearing up to celebrate Durga Puja with the usual fanfare after a hiatus of two years, the India Meteorological Department’s forecast indicates rain may play spoilsport during the festival. However, the rainfall activity might not be very strong as the south-west monsoon’s withdrawal process in Odisha commences around October 10.
During the monsoon’s withdrawal, the flow of north-westerly dry winds towards the State intensifies due to which the weather system may not have significant impact, IMD sources said. As per the national weather forecaster’s extended range outlook for week 1 (September 23 to 29) and week 2 (September 30 to October 6), guidance from various models including its Global Forecasting System does not indicate any cyclogenesis over the north Indian Ocean during the period.
“Rainfall activity may prevail in parts of Odisha between September 30 and October 6 due to likely formation of a cyclonic circulation over the Bay of Bengal,” said Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre Scientist Umasankar Das.