Cyclone Shakti Forming Over Bay Of Bengal? Weather Office Issues Clarification

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has denied reports suggesting the formation of "Cyclone Shakti" over the Bay of Bengal. In a statement to NDTV, the IMD said that no cyclone formation has been forecast. In its last update, the weather office said that the southwest monsoon has officially begun, marking its arrival in parts of the south Andaman Sea, Nicobar Islands, south Bay of Bengal, and some parts of the north Andaman Sea. It noted the presence of an upper "air cyclonic circulation" over the Bay of Bengal, but no cyclone alerts were issued. "We have not predicted any cyclone," a senior IMD scientist told NDTV.

"An upper air cyclonic circulation over southwest Bay of Bengal adjoining Tamil Nadu coast at 1.5 km above mean sea level at 0300 UTC of today, 14th May, 2025," IMD said in a press release on Wednesday. 

The weather office also said that conditions are favourable for further advance of southwest Monsoon over parts of the south Arabian Sea, Maldives and Comorin area; parts of the Bay of Bengal, entire Andaman and Nicobar Islands on May 16 and 17.

IMD weather update 

The weather office has said several parts of the country may witness heavy rainfall "under the influence of these systems". It predicted a fairly widespread moderate rainfall over Northeast India till May 17. 

It said isolated moderate rainfall is expected over Konkan, Goa, Madhya Maharashtra, Marathawada, Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Yanam, Rayalaseema, Telangana, Interior Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal till May 17.

The IMD has also predicted scattered rainfall over Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Sikkim, Bihar and Jharkhand till May 17. Isolated heavy rainfall is likely over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands till May 16, per the weather office. 

The IMD has issued a yellow alert in several districts of Karnataka, warning residents to expect more pre-monsoon showers until May 16. 

In Kolkata, the forecast for Wednesday indicates a partly cloudy sky, with a chance of thunderstorms and light to moderate rain in the evening.

Heat wave conditions are very likely in isolated pockets of Gangetic West Bengal, Jharkhand, on May 14 and 15; parts of Uttar Pradesh till May 19 and West Rajasthan from May 15th to 17, per the IMD.