BHUBANESWAR: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday said the depression over the Bay of Bengal will turn into a cyclonic storm but may skirt the Odisha coast and make landfall in West Bengal on May 20.

Director General of IMD Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said the system is likely to move in a north-northwest direction till Sunday and recurve north-northeastwards towards the West Bengal coast between Monday and Wednesday.

The national forecaster which is monitoring its course round the clock says there is a possibility that the cyclone will make landfall on the West Bengal or north Odisha coasts.

Currently, the system lay centred about 1060 km south of Paradip and moved north-westwards at a speed of 20 km per hour in the last three hours, The system is expected to intensify rapidly into a cyclonic storm in the next 12 hours and further into a severe cyclonic storm in the subsequent 24 hours.

Under its influence, heavy rainfall is likely to occur at isolated places over Gajapati, Ganjam, Puri, Jagatsinghpur and Kendrapara districts on Monday. Light to moderate rainfall or thundershower activity is expected at many places in coastal Odisha, Koraput and Rayagada districts and at a few places in the remaining districts of the state during the period.

The Odisha government has already alerted 12 districts and asked collectors to stay in preparedness in view of heavy rains and strong winds predicted by the Met office. An orange warning for heavy to very heavy rainfall in coastal Odisha has been issued for Tuesday.

Wind speed will pick up from Monday along the Odisha coast. From 40 km per hour on Tuesday, it may reach 75 km to 85 km per hour gusting up to 95 km from Wednesday morning along and off the north Odisha coast, Director, IMD, Odisha HR Biswas said.

The Met office has issued a red warning and advised fishermen not to venture into the sea from Monday evening. Those in the sea have been asked to return by Sunday.