INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KOLKATA: The deep depression over the Bay of Bengal is expected to intensify into a cyclonic storm on Friday that will lightly drench
Kolkata as it grazes past the Bengal coastline on its way to Bangladesh at wind speeds of up to 80km per hour, the Met department has
said.Christened Midhili, the cyclonic storm will make a much bigger splash in the state's coastal districts, bringing 70mm to 110mm of rain
in North and South 24 Parganas, Howrah and East Midnapore between Thursday and Friday.Alipore weathermen expect Kolkata to get 20mm to 30mm
rain on Friday.A second system, a deep depression off the Andhra coast, is also headed northwards towards Odisha, keeping the Bay of Bengal
exceptionally busy this season
This is the first time since 2018 that the Bay of Bengal has seen two simultaneous deep depressions
Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC) director G K Das, however, dispelled the concern over the two systems coming close enough to interact
with one another, or develop into a super cyclone
Midhili is the third cyclone in the northern Bay after Tej and Hamoon in a span of a month and half
"Cyclonic storms are relatively frequent in the Bay during November but they seldom have a substantial impact in Bengal as they usually
recurve towards Bangladesh," said Das
"Repeated systems developing in the Bay may cause frequent clouding, preventing the temperature from dropping," Das said.Although Midhili is
expected to make landfall between Mongla and Khepupara in Bangladesh on Saturday morning, rain in Bengal is unlikely to continue into the
While the temperature is also likely to be stable over next week, Thursday's overcast sky brought the maximum temperature down by th-ree
There were light drizzles in several parts of Kolkata, including at Eden Gardens, which hosted the World Cup semi-final between Australia
and South Africa on Thursday
The name 'Midhili' was given by Maldives
Countries affected by Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal cyclones rotationally name cyclones in a sequence, starting with Bangladesh followed by
India, Iran, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, UAE and Yemen
The last cyclone, Hamoon, was named by Iran.
