Cyclonic winds, cyclones: South Asia
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In brief
See graphic
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) classifies cyclonic winds into three categories--cyclonic disturbance (maximum wind speed 59kmhr), cyclones (wind speed 60 to 90 kmhr) and severe cyclones (wind speed 90 kmhr or more). Cyclone data for the years 1891 to 2012 shows a seasonal pattern. The mildest of these turbulent wind systems -cyclonic disturbances -peak in the monsoon season with an average of six to seven such incidents a year. The probability of cyclones and severe cyclones, on the other hand, is highest in the post-monsoon months. The data also shows that on an average, the Bay of Bengal is hit by at least one severe cyclone and a minimum of two cyclones each year
Naming tropical cyclones
The Hindustan Times, December 9, 2016
In 2016, Bay of Bengal witnessed Roanu, Kyant, Nada and Vardah (names of the tropical cyclones) which also affected India.
Vardah is the Arabic and Urdu word for ‘rose’, a name provided by Pakistan in the comprehensive nomenclature list for cyclones in the Arabian sea and Bay of Bengal.
In September 2004, an international panel on tropical cyclones decided that countries from the region would each put in names, which would be assigned to storms in the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea.
Eight countries -- India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Sri Lanka and Thailand – participated and came up with a list of 64 names.
In the event of a storm, the Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre, New Delhi, selects a name from the list. The late origin of this naming system -- unlike storms in the Atlantic, which have been getting named since 1953 -- was ostensibly to protect sensitivities in the ethnically diverse region.
The purpose of the move was also to make it easier for “people easily to understand and remember the tropical cyclone/hurricane in a region, thus to facilitate disaster risk awareness, preparedness, management and reduction,” according to the IMD.
Citizens can submit names to the Director General of Meteorology, IMD, for consideration, but the weather agency has strict rules for the selection process.
A name, for instance, ‘should be short and readily understood when broadcast’. The names must also be neutral, ‘not culturally sensitive and not convey some unintended and potentially inflammatory meaning’.
Furthermore, on the account of the ‘death and destruction’ a storm in the Indian Ocean causes, their names are retired after use, unlike those in the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific lists, which are reused every few years.
Cyclone Vardah:
Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Please see: Andaman And Nicobar Islands: Natural calamities
Tamil Nadu
The Hindu, December 12, 2016
Cyclone Vardah heads towards Chennai shores
Cyclonic storm Vardah is likely to make landfall by Monday afternoon along north Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh coast, close to Chennai, accompanied by strong winds with speeds of 80 to 90 kmph.
S. Balachandran, director, Area Cyclone Warning Centre in Chennai, told the media on Sunday the rains would gradually increase from the morning of December 12 and were expected to last until the next day in the northern districts of Chennai, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram.
Moderate rain
S.B.Thampi, Deputy Director General of Meteorology said, most places along north Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh coasts would get to light to moderate rain with possibilities of heavy rainfall of up to 20 cm as the system makes landfall.
“During landfall, Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Puducherry will get rainfall and once the system crosses, Vellore and Dharmapuri will begin to get rains,” he said.
Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam chaired a meeting in the Secretariat on Sunday to review the preparations by government agencies. Schools and colleges in Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur, Villupuram and Cuddalore districts have been closed on Monday.
The government also issued an advisory to private undertakings and establishments to permit their staff to avail of a holiday or to work from home.
“Due to the storm surge, the seas are expected to be rough and the tidal wave will be 1 m higher than normal. Fishermen have been warned not to venture out into the sea,” he said.
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force teams have been stationed at Chennai, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts as a precautionary measure.
Andhra Pradesh
The Andhra Pradesh government remains on high alert, monitoring the progress of cyclone Vardah with real-time updates from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), even as the system changed course towards the northern Tamil Nadu coast. Its initial track forecast landfall between East Godavari (Kakinada) and Nellore districts.
The government has been tapping into ISRO’s data following an understanding reached with the agency earlier this year for weather forecasting.
Naidu meets ISRO team
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, who cancelled his Dubai visit to monitor the likely impact of Vardah, held a meeting with ISRO scientists on Saturday.
According to official sources, the State government is getting inputs from the ISRO through its National Remote Sensing Centre and other wings round the clock.
Contingency plan
Later in a teleconference, Mr. Naidu told officials of various departments that the cyclone could cross the coast between Sriharikota and Chennai by Monday evening and trigger heavy rains in Chittoor, Kadapa and Nellore districts. He called upon the heads of departments to be prepared to face the contingency by drawing on their experience during Cyclone Hudhud two years ago.
NDRF teams have been deployed in Sullurpet and Tada in Nellore district. Four IAS officers — Mukesh Kumar Meena, B. Sridhar, M. Ravi Chandra and Ram Gopal — have been deputed as special officers to Prakasam, Nellore, Chittoor and Kadapa to handle the situation.
