A DEEP depression over the southeast Bay of Bengal is gradually intensifying and is expected to develop into a cyclonic storm ‘Montha’ by Monday morning, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Sunday. The Meteorological (MeT) office on Sunday said that Cyclone Montha will not have a direct impact on West Bengal but is likely to bring heavy rain from Monday onwards. The Odisha Government on Sunday put 30 districts on alert for heavy rains. An alert has been sounded across the Odisha coast from Ganjam to Balasore, with authorities urging fishermen and people to stay vigilant and not to venture into the sea as the conditions would be rough. The Indian Army has been placed on high alert as twin weather systems over the East Central Arabian Sea and the Southeast Bay of Bengal are set to intensify into Cyclone Montha within the next 48 hours, said an official on Sunday.

 

With the threat of cyclone ‘Montha’ in the Bay of Bengal looming large, the Andhra Pradesh Government has sent NDRF and SDRF teams to six coastal districts, appointed special officers for 19 districts and suspended all activities on beaches. The system is likely to bring heavy rainfall and strong winds to several coastal districts of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry over the next two days. It is forecast to intensify into a cyclonic storm by early Monday over the southwest and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal. Meteorologists predict that the system will continue to move in a north-northwest direction, gradually strengthening into a severe cyclonic storm by Monday night or early Tuesday. It is expected to cross the Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam, close to Kakinada, as a severe cyclonic storm by Tuesday evening or night.

 

Districts of South Bengal, including Kolkata, will receive rain due to the influence of the system. According to the special bulletin of the MeT office, the cyclone is then likely to make landfall between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatam on the Andhra Pradesh coast near Kakinada region on Tuesday evening or night as a severe cyclonic storm. The maximum wind speed at the time of landfall may be 90-100 kilometres per hour. The wind speed may reach 110 kilometres per hour, said the MeT Department. During its progression, wind speeds are likely to reach 90–100 kilometres per hour, with gusts up to 110 kilometres per hour along and off the Andhra and north Tamil Nadu coasts. The IMD has cautioned fishermen against venturing into the sea and advised those already at sea to return to the coast immediately due to the risk of rough waves and strong winds. Under the influence of the system, heavy to very heavy rain is expected in Tiruvallur, Chennai, Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Villupuram, Ranipet districts, and Puducherry on Sunday.