A DEEP depression in the Bay of Bengal has intensified into cyclonic storm ‘Jawad’ and it is likely to make landfall near Puri in Odisha on Sunday, the India Meteorological Department said on Friday.

The areas which will be impacted the most include Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts of north coastal Andhra Pradesh, and Gajapati, Ganjam, Puri, Nayagarh, Khurda, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara districts of Odisha, MeT office said. The cyclonic storm is likely to reach the west-central Bay of Bengal off the coast of north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha by Saturday morning, IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said during a media briefing.

Thereafter, it is likely to recurve north-north-eastwards, move along the coast of Odisha and adjoining Andhra Pradesh and touch the coast around Puri by December 5 noon, he said.

The name of the cyclone -- ‘Jawad’ -- has been proposed by Saudi Arabia.

A low-pressure area had developed over the Andaman Sea on November 30.

It intensified into a depression on December 2 and further into a deep depression on Friday morning. It turned into a cyclone on Friday noon, the IMD DG said.

Very heavy rainfall is likely to start in north coastal Andhra Pradesh and south coastal Odisha by Friday evening. The intensity of rainfall is likely to increase on Saturday, he said.

A red colour warning has been issued for Andhra Pradesh’s Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts for Saturday. The red colour warning has also been issued for Gajapati, Ganjam, Puri, Jagatsinghpur districts of Odisha.

The IMD has forecast heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places over West Bengal on Saturday and Sunday, and heavy rainfall at isolated places over Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura on Sunday and Monday.

Sea conditions will remain unsafe for shipping and fishermen in the central and north Bay of Bengal from Friday to Sunday. The IMD has been issuing regular bulletins with the latest forecast to all the states concerned.