The India Meteorological Department has issued a red alert for extremely heavy rainfall across Odisha on July 14 and 15 [1].

The warning comes as a low-pressure system threatens to trigger urban flash floods and landslides, posing a significant risk to infrastructure and public safety in coastal and inland districts.

According to the IMD, a well-marked low-pressure area is currently located over the northwest Bay of Bengal, adjoining north Odisha and West Bengal [5]. This system is expected to trigger extremely heavy rainfall over the next 48 hours [4].

Bhubaneswar Director Manorama Mohanty and the IMD said specific areas of high risk have been identified. Extremely heavy rainfall is expected in Kendrapada, Jagatsinghpur, and Bhadrak during the next 24 hours [2].

Additionally, the department forecast heavy to very heavy rain over the next 48 hours for several other districts [3]. These areas include Balasore, Jajpur, Cuttack, Puri, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Ganjam, and Gajapati [3].

Local authorities are monitoring the situation as the low-pressure system continues to influence weather patterns across east and northeast India [1]. The potential for landslides remains a primary concern for the hilly regions of the state, while urban centers face the threat of sudden flooding due to the volume of precipitation predicted by the agency.

“The India Meteorological Department has issued a red alert for extremely heavy rainfall across Odisha on July 14 and 15.”

The issuance of a red alert indicates the highest level of weather severity, requiring immediate preparedness from state emergency services. Because the low-pressure system is situated over the northwest Bay of Bengal, the concentration of moisture is likely to cause intense, localized flooding in the identified coastal districts, potentially disrupting transport and agriculture in the region.