According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), on Monday, cyclonic storm Sitrang was around 520 km from Sagar Island and would become a severe cyclonic storm in the following 12 hours.
On Tuesday morning, the storm is predicted to pass across the coasts of Bangladesh and the nearby West Bengal region (October 25). The Sundarbans, which are located on both sides of the international boundary, are expected to experience the most effect, per the forecast.
The potential storm has put West Bengal and Odisha on high alert. This would be the first cyclone to form in the Bay of Bengal in October since 2018. Coastal areas of Odisha and West Bengal will have widespread heavy rain through Tuesday, and southern Assam, east Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, and Tripura can expect moderate to severe rain.
Cyclone Sitrang formed over the east-central Bay of Bengal on Sunday around late evening, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
In it's latest bulletin, IMD said ''Deep depression over west-central & adjoining east-central Bay of Bengal moved northwestwards with a speed of 18 kmph during the past 6 hours & is very likely to move northwestwards during next 6 hrs & intensify into a cyclonic storm over the central Bay of Bengal."