As the Northeast monsoon intensified across Tamil Nadu, the regional weather office issued heavy rainfall alert to a number of districts. Chief Minister M K Stalin reviewed the situation and directed precautionary measures.
'This is the first case in which we saw use of Starlink by smugglers.'
On February 22, 2024, President Droupadi Murmu -- supreme commander of India's defence forces -- witnessed an impressive operational demonstration by the Andaman and Nicobar Command at Swaraj Dweep in the South Andaman.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said all tourists at Havelock Island in the Andamans are safe and efforts are on for their early evacuation.
Besides heavy traffic congestion, the intermittent heavy rains led to inundation in several parts of the city and neighbouring districts of Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Chengelpet.
India's first woman elephant mahout Parbati Baruah famous as Hasti Kanya, tribal environmentalist Chami Murmu, social worker Sangthankima who runs Mizoram's largest orphanage and plastic surgeon Prema Dhanraj who treats burn victims are among 34 "unsung heroes" awarded Padma Shri on Thursday.
The Southwest Monsoon is set to arrive early with the Andaman and Nicobar Islands expected to receive first seasonal showers on May 15, the weather office said on Thursday.
The low-pressure area over the South Andaman Sea and adjoining southeast Bay of Bengal is very likely to move northwestwards and intensify into a depression by Saturday, the weather office said.
The weather system over the South Andaman Sea and the adjoining southeast Bay of Bengal is very likely to move north-westwards and strengthen into a depression by Saturday, the Met Department said.
On January 23, the N D Modi government named 21 uninhabited islands in the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar after recipients of Param Vir Chakra, the country's highest wartime gallantry award.
Weather scientists attribute the early onset of southwest monsoon over Kerala to the influence of the remnants of cyclone Asani that triggered the cross-equatorial flow, a key factor for the seasonal rains.
The government has decided to name 21 uninhabited islands in the Union territory of Andaman & Nicobar after recipients of Param Vir Chakra, the country's highest wartime gallantry award.
A fresh spell of heatwave is likely to begin over northwest India from May 7 and over central India from May 8, the India meteorological department said on Thursday.
After the west coast, another cyclone is likely to hit the east coast by May 26-27, the India meteorological department said on Wednesday.
The system lay centered at 5.30 am over Southeast Bay of Bengal, about 450 km west-northwest of Car Nicobar (Nicobar Islands), 380 km west of Port Blair (Andaman Islands), 970 km southeast of Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) and 1030 km south-southeast of Puri (Odisha).
A cyclonic circulation lies over the southeast Bay of Bengal and the adjoining south Andaman Sea extending up to middle tropospheric levels. Under its influence, a low pressure area is very likely to form over the southeast Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood during the next 24 hours.
The southwest monsoon is likely to arrive over Kerala on May 31, a day earlier than its normal onset date, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
The IMD has issued a red-colour coded warning for the southern areas of Tamil Nadu Kerala in view of the brewing storm and said that these areas are expected to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall.
At least 21 persons died on Sunday when the tourist boat carrying them capsized in the Bay of Bengal near Port Blair in the Andaman and Nicobar islands, official sources said. The boat carrying 45 people -- tourists from Kanchi Puram district of Tamil Nadu and Mumbai, and crewmembers -- sank on its way from Ross Island to North Bay.
A government employee has tested positive for Covid-19 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Friday, officials said. The 49-year-old man is the first positive case after the administration started pool testing of samples, they said.
'After the 4th of May we can expect thunderstorms, dust storms and some rain over a large area of north India.'
This map shows the districts of India with their encroachment levels.
Surplus rain water gushed out of reservoirs while several roads here resembled swollen rivers and four persons were killed in rain related incidents in Tamil Nadu and over 60 houses suffered damage, authorities here said on Monday.
Eight Jarawa girls were rescued from two remote creeks in Andaman and Nicobar Islands after they were kidnapped by a group of men from a Jarawa Reserve Zone last week, the police said on Wednesday.
Monsoon will hit the Kerala coast on June 1, setting the stage for the four-month annual rainfall season crucial for India's agriculture-based economy. "The date of onset of the southwest monsoon over Kerala is likely to be on June 1 with a model error of four days," the India Meteorological Department announced on Tuesday.
The quake, with a magnitude of 5.9 on the Richter Scale, hit south Andaman region at 01:21 hours, the India Meteorological Department said in New Delhi.
Moderate to rather heavy rains are likely at many places over all districts of coastal Tamil Nadu and Puducherry on Monday as a low pressure area would form over the Southwest Bay.
The south-west monsoon, the lifeline of many farmers of the country, has set in the south Andaman Sea and the south-east Bay of Bengal a good five days in advance. Weather forecasters have predicted widespread rains over Andaman and Nicobar islands during the next three to four days and further strengthening of westerly winds in the region. India's 235 million farmers rely on the timing of the June-September monsoon season to decide which crops to grow.
Eyewitnesses to the boat tragedy also claimed that there was a blast before the capsize and that there was an hour's delay before the marine rescue team could reach the spot.
The news will augur well for the country as large parts have been witnessing agriculture distress and water levels in reservoirs in west and south India have dipped to low levels.
'It could rain about 200 mm in short span of time.'
Chief Minister K Palaniswami announced a solatium of Rs 4 lakh to the kin of each of the victims
The toll in rain-related incidents in Tamil Nadu rose to 48 on Thursday even as the MeT office forecast another spell of heavy showers next week following formation of a new trough of low pressure.
'Wanting to see the bright side of things, we always told ourselves, 'It could have been worse!', when the situation got tough.' Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd), who helped rebuild the IAF's Car Nicobar air base after the 2004 tsunami, recalls the devastation on United Nations World Tsunami Awareness Day.
Rains on Friday continued to batter several parts of Tamil Nadu under the influence of an active North-East monsoon as the toll in rain-related incidents in the state stood at 48.
This classification of districts is to be followed by states and union terrotories till a week post May 3, when the second phase of lockdown will end, for containment operations.
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