The southwest monsoon, which arrived in Odisha two days ago, advanced rapidly and covered the entire state Monday, an official said.
"The southwest monsoon has further advanced into the remaining parts of the state, and covered the whole of Odisha today (Monday)" S.S. Sahu, director of the Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre, told IANS.
The monsoon normally reaches the state by June 10. However, this year it arrived two days ahead of schedule.
Odisha contributes about one-tenth of the country's total rice production. A good monsoon is crucial for the state, which has about 75 percent of its workforce engaged in agriculture.
