Lopar intensifies, Odisha likely to receive more rain

Bhubaneswar: The low pressure area formed over north-west and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal has on Friday intensified into a depression over the same area off the south Odisha and north Andhra Pradesh coast and was centered about 130 km east of Gopalpur, SOA’s Centre for Environment and Climate (CEC) said.

The system was likely to move northwestwards and cross Odisha coast near Puri in the forenoon of Saturday, the CEC bulletin said.

Under its influence, rain punctuated by occasional intense spells of rainfall will continue over coastal, southern and western parts of the state till late evening on Friday due to convection exemplified by sunshine and cloudy sky alternately.

The bulletin said the system will continue to move in the northwesterly direction causing heavy to very heavy rains spread across coastal, northern and western parts of the state from Friday night which will persist till Saturday evening.  Heavy rainfall is likely in western Odisha up to Tuesday, it said.

Fresh moderate to heavy precipitation is expected in northern and western Odisha again from Tuesday including in the catchment of major rivers like upper Mahanadi, Baitarani, Brahmani, Budhabalanga and Subarnarekha due to presence of a cyclonic circulation over north Odisha and Jharkhand which will continue till next Friday, it said.