PremiumThe Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issued warnings on Sunday evening as a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm. The cyclone came very close to the coast of West Bengal and is likely to cause light to moderate rainfall in parts of Odisha and West Bengal.
The warning mentioned that on Tuesday morning, the cyclone named ‘Sitrang’ by Thailand is likely to make landfall between Tinkona island and Sandwip in Bangladesh.
The Sundarbans in West Bengal and Bangladesh will be impacted by Cyclone 'Sitrang' with the tidal waves expected to reach six meters in height due to the combined effect of the weather system and the astronomical tide.
"The main affected area will be the Sunderbans in the coastal areas of North and South 24 Parganas districts of West Bengal and Bangladesh," Deputy Director General of Regional Met Centre, Sanjib Bandopadhyay, told news agency ANI.
The weather department also predicted rains in several states of north-eastern India like Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, etc.
"Light to moderate rainfall at most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places is likely over north Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur on 24 25 and 26 October," the IMD said in a release.
IMD also advised fishermen to not venture into the Bay of Bengal and those who are already out at sea should return to the coast as soon as possible.
“Fishermen are advised not to venture into the central Bay of Bengal on 23rd and 24th, north & adjoining central Bay of Bengal on 24th and 25th October 2022. Fishermen out at sea are advised to return to the coast," the weather department said in a release.
The government also advised people to not venture near the sea during the ongoing festival season.
The cyclone 'Sitrang' is the same Super Cyclone about which a Canadian Ph.D. scholar warned a few days back, but the Indian Meteorological Department dismissed those warnings as ‘rumours’.