The extremely severe cyclonic storm Maha is currently over the north-central Arabian Sea and is expected to move slightly westward before curving back towards India and hitting the Gujarat coast late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning. By the time Maha hits Gujarat, it will have weakened to severe cyclonic storm bringing winds of 100-110 kmph.
Cyclone Maha's effects will be felt in both Maharashtra and Gujarat. According to the India Metrological Department, Maha will bring heavy rain to regions of both the states.
In Gujarat, heavy rainfall will take place over Junagarh, Gir Somnath, Amreli, Bhavnagar, Surat, Bharuch, Anand, Ahmedabad, Botad, Porbandar, Rajkot and Vadodara on Wednesday and Thursday. In Maharashtra, heavy rainfall is expected to take place over Mumbai, Thane, Palghar and some other northern districts.
Maha, which is pronounced M'maha, was named by Oman and comes days after Cyclone Kyarr, which formed over the Arabian Sea and headed towards India before curving and moving towards Africa.
LANDFALL
According to the IMD, Cyclone Maha will cross the Gujarat coast late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning between Diu and Porbandar. Maha will hit Gujarat as a severe cyclonic storm and bring winds of up to 110 kmph.
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After hitting Gujarat, Maha is expected to steadily lose intensity, becoming a depression by early Friday morning. Apart from heavy rain, Cyclone Maha is also expected to lead to rough sea conditions along the Maharashtra and Gujarat coasts. The rough sea conditions will be seen from Wednesday morning onwards.
The IMD has advised a total suspension of fishing activities until Wednesday. The weather office has also predicted damage to thatched houses, damage to communication and power lines, major damage to coastal crops and uprooting of trees.
GOVT TAKES STOCK
Meanwhile, the central government took stock of the situation Monday with cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba chairing a meeting of the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) to review the preparations for Cyclone Maha.
The chief secretaries of Gujarat and Maharashtra were part of the meeting and they are learned to have told the gathering that necessary preparations have been made and teams from the National Disaster Relief Force and the State Disaster Relief Force are in position.
Ships from the Indian Coast Guard and Indian Navy too are ready to deal with the aftermath of the cyclone, the bureaucrats told the meeting.
Senior officials from the ministries of home and defence, officers from the union territory administration of Daman & Diu as well as officials from the IMD, National Disaster Mitigation Agency and NDRF were also part of the meeting.