Cyclone Mandous intensifies in Bay of Bengal, likely to hit TN & AP coasts

Cyclone Mandous intensifies in Bay of Bengal, likely to hit TN & AP coasts

New Delhi, Dec 07: A low-pressure area that had been developing over the South Andaman Sea and its surrounding region has intensified into a cyclonic storm Mandous, , the name which is given by the United Arab Emirates which means a ;treasure box' in the Arabic language.

After "Cyclone Sitrang," which struck the Bangladesh coast in October, it will be the second tropical storm to form in the Bay of Bengal after the monsoon this year.

The IMD predicts that the storm will likely move toward north Tamil Nadu-Puducherry and south Andhra Pradesh. Tomorrow, December 8, is likely to see the Cyclone Mandous make landfall.

The National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) met to review state and union territory governments' and central government agencies' readiness for a potential cyclone over the Bay of Bengal. Yesterday's review meeting was presided over by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba.

The Cabinet Secretary emphasised that the goal should be to prevent any deaths from occurring and to minimise damage to property and infrastructure, such as power and telecom, and that in the event that damage occurs, it must be repaired as soon as possible.

Informing the Committee of the current weather conditions in the Bay of Bengal, which are expected to move west-northwestward and concentrate into a Depression over the South East Bay of Bengal by this evening, was Dr. Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, DG, India Meteorological Department (IMD).

After that, it is anticipated to continue moving west-northwestward and intensify into a cyclonic storm around December 7 evening. By early December 8th, it will be off the coasts of North Tamil Nadu-Puducherry and adjacent South Andhra Pradesh. For the next 48 hours, it will continue to move west-northwestward toward the coasts of north Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and neighbouring South Andhra Pradesh.

The Committee received updates from the chief secretaries of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry on the preparations being made to safeguard the people living in the expected path of the cyclone. The local government has also announced precautions that should be taken, such as asking fishermen not to go out to sea and calling those who are already at sea to return to safe berths. Services for emergencies are kept ready.

NDRF has provided Puducherry with three teams and Tamil Nadu with five teams. Additionally, the teams are kept ready to activate in Andhra Pradesh as needed by the state government.The Coast Guard is also ready with its ships.

The chief secretaries of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry, along with senior officers from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Union Home Secretary, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Power, DG Telecom, Member Secretary NDMA, CISC IDS, IG NDRF, DG IMD, and DG Coast Guard, all attended the meeting.