Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government is fully prepared to deal with any possible cyclone or heavy rainfall situation arising from the developing in the Bay of Bengal, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said on Monday.
Speaking to reporters, the Minister said the state government has alerted all district administrations and is closely monitoring weather developments based on forecasts from both foreign weather models and the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
“There is an assessment of two low-pressure systems forming in the Bay of Bengal. While an American agency is assessing the possibility of a cyclone, the IMD has so far predicted only rainfall. As per current assessments, southern Odisha has been placed under red alert and coastal districts under orange alert,” Pujari said.
He added that all precautionary measures have been put in place, and the administration is ready to respond promptly if the situation worsens. “If the disaster turns severe, even if our preparedness falls short in some areas, it will be dealt with effectively,” he assured.
Meanwhile, Manorama Mohanty, Director of the IMD’s Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre, said that the low pressure formed over the southwest Bay of Bengal has intensified into a well-marked low-pressure area and is likely to develop into a depression within 24 hours.
“The system is expected to move west-northwestwards towards north Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and south Andhra coasts, with a possibility of further intensification. However, it will have no direct impact on Odisha,” Mohanty clarified.
The Regional Meteorological Centre has predicted light to moderate rainfall accompanied by lightning, thunder, and gusty winds in several parts of the state over the next five days. Rainfall activity is expected mainly over southern, coastal, and northern Odisha districts.
A yellow warning has been issued for Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, Kandhamal, Ganjam, Boudh, Nayagarh, Khordha, Puri, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, and Kendrapara districts for the next 24 hours. Similar warnings have also been issued for Jajpur, Bhadrak, and Balasore districts for tomorrow, the IMD said.
