Southwest monsoon arrives in Odisha, likely to advance further in next 2 days

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], June 22 : The southwest monsoon arrived in Odisha on Thursday and is likely to advance further over the next couple of days.

"The southwest monsoon hit Odisha's Malkangiri, Koraput and Gajapati districts today and is likely to further advance and cover Odisha in the next two days," the Indian Meteorological Department said in a release.

The Met agency added, "Heavy to very heavy rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning activities is likely to take place in the state from June 22 and continue till June 24."

Meanwhile, Odisha's Dhenkanal received 70 mm of rainfall over the last 24 hours, with Keonjhar trailing closely at 66.2 mm.

Last year, the southwest monsoon had hit the eastern state on June 16.