Odisha braces for heavy rain as depression forms in Bay of Bengal

Pedestrians and street vendors take shelter under a temporary roadside shop to protect from the rain in Bhubaneswar on September 8, 2024. | Photo credit: Biswaranjan Rout

The India Meteorological Department said on Sunday that a clearly visible low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal has turned into a depression and Odisha is likely to receive heavy rainfall over the next three days.

The Odisha government has put 16 districts on high alert.

According to the IMD, the atmospheric system was located at a distance of about 280 km east of Kalingapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), 230 km east-southeast of Gopalpur (Odisha), 260 km southeast of Paradip (Odisha) and 390 km south of Digha (West Bengal).

Rainfall in Telangana and Odisha: Track highlights on September 8, 2024

The agency said in a bulletin that the storm is likely to move almost northwards towards the coast of northern Odisha and West Bengal and intensify into a deep depression in the next 24 hours.

“It is very likely to move west(1)northwestwards and cross Odisha and adjoining West Bengal coasts between Puri and Digha around evening of September 9 (Monday). If it moves further west-northwestwards, it is likely to cross Odisha and adjoining Gangetic West Bengal and Jharkhand and adjoining north Chhattisgarh during the next two days,” it said.

A yellow alert has been issued for Khordha, Nayagarh, Cuttack, Boudh, Subarnapur, Bolangir, Nuapada, Jagatsinghpur, Jajpur, Kendrapada, Bhadrak, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi, Kadhamal, Sambalpur and Bargarh districts, indicating that some places may receive rainfall between 7 cm and 11 cm.

In Pictures | Rain wreaks havoc in Telangana

The Manjeera river overflows in front of the Vanadurga Bhavani temple at Edupayala in Medak district, Telangana on September 2, 2024.

Fishermen hunt for fish as the Mahbub Sagar Tank overflows due to incessant rains in Sangareddy in Sangareddy district.

Washed away railway tracks after heavy rain in Mahbubabad district on September 1, 2024. Photo: Special arrangement

Singur Project seen in Sangareddy District on September 1, 2024

Floodgates of Hussain Sagar Lake were opened on Sunday as the water level in the lake rose. The full tank level of the lake in Hyderabad is 513.41 metres, which is marginally above the FT, in Hyderabad on September 1, 2024.

Commuters and pedestrians were caught unawares by the rain that lashed Habshiguda in Hyderabad on September 1, 2024.

Washed away railway tracks after heavy rain in Mahbubabad district on September 1, 2024. Photo: Special arrangement

Monsoon emergency crews try to open manhole covers as flooded roads turn into lakes at Uppal in Hyderabad on September 1, 2024.

Workers remove a fallen tree that fell due to strong winds and rains at Lakdi Ka Pul in Hyderabad on September 1, 2024.

View of Hussain Sagar Lake in Hyderabad on September 1, 2024.

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A red alert (more than 20 cm) has been issued for five districts: Puri, Khordha, Jagatsinghpur, Dhenkanal and Cuttack for September 9.

Fishermen have been asked not to venture out to sea till September 11. According to the office of the Special Relief Commissioner, collectors have been asked to keep the administrative machinery ready to deal with any eventuality. While relocation of vulnerable populations may not be necessary, people in general have been advised to monitor the weather and protect themselves. There is a possibility of submergence of low-lying areas in urban areas.