The India Meteorological Department has sounded an orange alert for Mayurbhanj and Balasore districts in Odisha ahead of a very heavy rain spell forecast to begin August 29.
The alert comes as a fresh low-pressure system moves through the state, with a yellow warning also issued for 19 other districts expected to see isolated very heavy rain.
The IMD said the heaviest rainfall is likely between August 29 and September 1, with the wider active spell over Odisha continuing through September 2.
Authorities have flagged a high risk of waterlogging, localised flooding and disrupted travel in the districts under the orange warning during the peak rain period.
Odisha has experienced repeated heavy-rain spells this monsoon, each linked to a fresh low-pressure system forming over the Bay of Bengal and tracking into the state.
IMD’s district-level warnings are colour-coded, with orange indicating authorities should be prepared for disruptive weather and yellow signalling a need for increased vigilance, a step below the more severe red alert.
The IMD has also issued heavy rain warnings for Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Gangetic West Bengal, east Madhya Pradesh and Sikkim through the day.
Northeastern states including Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura are also under alert for heavy rainfall at isolated locations, with warnings for Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura extending across multiple days ahead.
Uttarakhand has been placed under a heavy rain warning with thunderstorms and lightning, and the IMD has forecast very heavy rainfall in the hill state between August 31 and September 1.
In contrast, Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra have no subdivision-level severe weather warnings for the day, with Delhi expected to see a maximum temperature of around 36 degrees Celsius and a minimum near 26 degrees Celsius.
Tamil Nadu and Puducherry have been placed under a thunderstorm and lightning warning as the wider weather system continues to move across the country.
Photo by McKay Savage, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (representative monsoon rain image)
