NEW DELHI: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned of extremely heavy rainfall, powerful winds and squally conditions across several parts of India on Wednesday, October 28, as severe cyclonic storm Arnab is expected to intensify further and cross the Andhra Pradesh coast by forenoon.Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam, Telangana, Odisha and Chhattisgarh are likely to bear the brunt of the storm, with extremely heavy rainfall forecast in isolated areas.The cyclonic storm Arnab, which intensified into a severe cyclonic storm over the west-central Bay of Bengal, is expected to become a very severe cyclonic storm before making landfall between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam, close to Yanam, on Wednesday morning. The system is forecast to bring maximum sustained winds of 115-125 kmph, gusting to 140 kmph, during landfall.The IMD has also warned of extremely heavy rainfall over Telangana and coastal Andhra Pradesh, while Odisha and Chhattisgarh are likely to experience intense rainfall and strong winds. Several parts of central and eastern India may also receive widespread showers, thunderstorms and lightning.IMD alert for WednesdayThe IMD has forecast fairly widespread to widespread rainfall over coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam, Telangana, Odisha, East Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha and Chhattisgarh on Wednesday.Extremely heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places over coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam, Telangana and Odisha. Chhattisgarh is also expected to experience an intense spell of rainfall, with extremely heavy showers likely during October 28-29.Thundersqualls and strong winds are likely across several regions. Odisha may experience thundersqualls with wind speeds of 60-70 kmph, gusting to 80 kmph, while Telangana and Jharkhand are also under warnings for squally conditions.The IMD has warned of damaging winds along the Andhra Pradesh coast, where gusts may reach 140 kmph during the cyclone’s landfall. Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the west-central Bay of Bengal and along the Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coasts during the warning period.Cyclone Arnab: Landfall and wind warningCyclonic storm Arnab was centred over the west-central Bay of Bengal at 5.30 pm IST on October 26, around 490 km south-southeast of Gopalpur in Odisha and 490 km east-southeast of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.The system is expected to continue moving west-northwestwards before turning northwestwards and crossing the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam by forenoon on October 28.Wind speeds along and off the Andhra Pradesh coast are expected to increase progressively. Squally winds of 40-50 kmph, gusting to 60 kmph, are forecast from the morning of October 27, strengthening to 115-125 kmph, gusting to 140 kmph, by early Wednesday morning.After landfall, wind speeds are expected to gradually decrease, with gale-force winds of 60-70 kmph, gusting to 80 kmph, likely by Wednesday evening. Squally conditions may continue into Thursday morning.South Odisha’s coastal areas are also likely to experience strong winds, while parts of southern Odisha, south Chhattisgarh and adjoining northeastern Telangana may face gale-force winds on Wednesday.Andhra Pradesh and Telangana weather tomorrowCoastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam are expected to experience some of the most severe weather conditions on Wednesday, with extremely heavy rainfall likely at isolated places. Widespread rainfall is forecast during October 27-29 as cyclone Arnab approaches the coast.The IMD has warned of thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds reaching 80-90 kmph over coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam during October 27-28. Wind speeds may rise sharply as the cyclone approaches landfall, particularly in coastal districts between Krishna and Anakapalli.The IMD has issued red, orange and yellow rainfall warnings for coastal Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring areas for Wednesday, with several districts placed under the highest level of alert.Red warnings have been issued for Visakhapatnam, Alluri Sitharama Raju, Anakapalle, Kakinada, Konaseema, East Godavari, West Godavari, Eluru, NTR, Krishna and Guntur districts.Orange alerts cover Srikakulam, Parvathipuram Manyam, Vizianagaram and Bapatla districts, along with Yanam. Palnadu, Prakasam and Nellore districts are under yellow warnings.Telangana is also likely to receive widespread rainfall on Wednesday, with extremely heavy showers possible at isolated places. A thundersquall, with winds reaching 50-60 kmph and gusting to 70 kmph, is forecast over the state.Strong winds are likely over parts of northeastern Telangana, including Khammam, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Mulugu and Mahabubabad, as the cyclone moves inland. The IMD has also forecast thunderstorms and lightning over parts of the state, with the wet spell likely to continue into the following days.Rayalaseema may experience thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds during the cyclone’s approach, while rainfall activity is expected to remain comparatively scattered.Odisha, Jharkhand and Bihar weatherOdisha is likely to receive widespread rainfall on Wednesday, with extremely heavy showers forecast at isolated places during October 27-28. The state is also under a warning for thundersqualls, with winds reaching 60-70 kmph and gusting to 80 kmph on Wednesday.Coastal and southern Odisha are likely to experience strong winds as the cyclone approaches the Andhra Pradesh coast. Gale-force winds of 60-70 kmph, gusting to 80 kmph, are forecast over parts of southern Odisha, including Ganjam, Gajapati, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri, during the early hours of Wednesday and through the night.Jharkhand may receive isolated to scattered rainfall on Wednesday, with heavy rain likely at isolated places. Very heavy rainfall is forecast over the state on October 29, while thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds are likely during the October 28-29 period.Bihar is likely to see isolated rainfall on Wednesday, with rainfall activity increasing from Thursday. The IMD has forecast very heavy rainfall over Bihar during October 29-30, along with thunderstorms and gusty winds over parts of the state.Central India forecastEast Madhya Pradesh is likely to receive fairly widespread to widespread rainfall on Wednesday, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph, with gusts up to 60 kmph. Heavy rainfall is possible at isolated places on October 28, with very heavy showers forecast on October 29.Vidarbha is also expected to experience widespread rainfall on Wednesday and Thursday. Very heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places on Wednesday, while thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds may affect parts of the region.Chhattisgarh is likely to remain under an intense rainfall spell, with extremely heavy showers forecast at isolated places during October 28-29. Thundersqualls, with winds reaching 50-60 kmph and gusting to 70 kmph, are also likely during this period.Strong winds are expected over southern Chhattisgarh, particularly districts such as Sukma, Dantewada, Bijapur and Bastar, where gale-force winds may reach 60-70 kmph, gusting to 80 kmph, on Wednesday.West Madhya Pradesh may receive isolated to scattered rainfall, with thunderstorms and gusty winds possible through the latter part of the week.West India forecastKonkan and Goa, Madhya Maharashtra and Marathwada are likely to receive isolated to scattered rainfall during October 28-30.Madhya Maharashtra may experience thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph, with gusts up to 60 kmph, during the same period. Konkan and Goa are also likely to see thunderstorms and gusty winds on Thursday, October 29.No widespread heavy rainfall warning has been indicated for these regions on Wednesday, although localised showers and unsettled weather remain possible.Delhi-NCR and northwest India weatherDelhi, Haryana, Chandigarh and Punjab may see isolated to scattered rainfall on Wednesday as weather activity begins to increase over parts of northwest India. However, the forecast indicates a more active spell later in the week, with gusty winds possible over Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi, Punjab and parts of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan during October 29-30.Uttarakhand may receive isolated to scattered rainfall from Wednesday through November 1, with heavy rainfall likely at isolated places on October 30. Gusty winds are also possible over parts of the state during October 29-30.East Uttar Pradesh may receive isolated rainfall on Wednesday, with thunderstorms and gusty winds possible. Rainfall activity is expected to intensify on Thursday and Friday, when fairly widespread to widespread showers are forecast. Very heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places over East Uttar Pradesh during October 29-30, followed by a possibility of heavy rain on October 31.West Uttar Pradesh and East Rajasthan may also experience scattered showers later in the week. Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and adjoining areas are likely to see isolated to scattered rainfall during October 29-30.Northeast India weather forecastAssam and Meghalaya may receive isolated to scattered rainfall on Wednesday, accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning. Rainfall activity is expected to continue through November 1, with heavy showers likely at isolated places from October 30.Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura are also likely to experience isolated to scattered rainfall on Wednesday, with thunderstorms and lightning possible. Heavy rainfall is forecast at isolated places over these states on October 28.Arunachal Pradesh may see isolated to scattered showers later in the week, particularly during October 30-November 1.South India weather forecastKerala and Mahe may experience isolated to scattered rainfall on Wednesday, while coastal Karnataka and South Interior Karnataka are likely to see rainfall activity increase from October 28.Strong winds are possible over South Interior Karnataka on Wednesday, while North Interior Karnataka may experience gusty winds on Thursday and Friday. Telangana and coastal Andhra Pradesh are expected to remain the most affected southern regions due to cyclone Arnab.Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal may receive isolated to scattered showers, while Rayalaseema could experience thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds during the cyclone’s approach. Squally weather is also forecast along and off the north Tamil Nadu coast from Tuesday evening through Wednesday evening.Fishermen advisoryThe IMD has advised fishermen not to venture into the west-central Bay of Bengal from October 26-29 and along and off the Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coasts from October 27-29.Fishermen have also been warned against venturing into the northwest Bay of Bengal and along and off the West Bengal coast from October 27-29. Similar restrictions apply to the southwest Bay of Bengal and along and off the north Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coasts on October 27-28.Squally to gale-force winds and rough sea conditions are expected around the cyclone’s path. Fishermen operating in the affected areas have been advised to remain ashore until conditions improve.IMD’s latest forecast for the next few daysRainfall activity is expected to remain intense across eastern, central and southern India over the coming days as cyclone Arnab crosses the Andhra Pradesh coast and moves inland.Coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam, Telangana and Odisha are forecast to experience extremely heavy rainfall in isolated areas on Wednesday, while Chhattisgarh may continue to receive extremely heavy showers through Thursday. Vidarbha and East Madhya Pradesh are also likely to see very heavy rainfall during the period.In northwest India, rainfall activity is expected to increase from Thursday, with very heavy rainfall possible over East Uttar Pradesh during October 29-30 and heavy rainfall forecast over Uttarakhand on October 30. Parts of eastern India, including Jharkhand and Bihar, may also experience heavy to very heavy rainfall later in the week.The IMD has warned that cyclone-related winds, thunderstorms and rough sea conditions could pose risks along the Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coasts and in adjoining inland districts. Residents in affected areas should follow official weather bulletins and local administration advisories as the system approaches landfall.
