Tropical cyclones usually have catastrophic consequences, causing immense damage to life and property. Storms are seasonal phenomenon appearing in post and pre-Monsoon seasons in India. They are more frequent in the post-Monsoon season, as the country awaits the onset of Northeast Monsoon.
Climatologically, these storms forming in the Bay of Bengal generally strike the Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal coasts.
Date of occurrence and other information related to such storms need to be stored for future reference, historical records and to overcome any confusion about these storms. Moreover, the practice of naming helps in quick identification of storms because names are presumed to be far easier to remember than numbers and technical terms.
Naming of Cyclones
Prior to 2000, there was no practice of naming cyclones in the Indian seas. However, the 1999 cyclonic storm which ripped Odisha, triggered the necessity of naming storms.
The WMO (World Meteorological Organisation) envisaged a panel, comprising of members from 8 countries, to assign names to storms forming in the Indian Ocean. These countries have prepared 64 names which have been in use on a rotational basis. The names of the countries are listed alphabetically and names given by them are used sequentially column-wise.
At present, column 6 is in use and the next storm to be formed will be named Vardha. This name was given by Pakistan. The name of the current Cyclone Nada has been given by Oman.
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