Updated October 26: Cyclone Arnab formed early on October 26 over the east-central Bay of Bengal. At 5:30 AM IST on October 26 it was near latitude 15.4 degrees North and longitude 88.9 degrees East, about 650 km east-southeast of Visakhapatnam, moving west at 15 kmph. The India Meteorological Department expects it to become a severe cyclonic storm by midnight on October 26 and a very severe cyclonic storm on October 27, crossing the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam by the forenoon of October 28, with maximum sustained winds of 115-125 kmph, gusting to 140 kmph. IMD has issued a red-message warning for Andhra Pradesh and adjoining south Odisha coasts, and warned of a 1.5-metre storm surge near Kakinada and Yanam at landfall. Extremely heavy rain is expected in coastal Andhra Pradesh on October 27-28 and in Odisha on October 28. Forecasts can change — follow IMD and state advisories.
Cyclone Arnab will hit the north Andhra Pradesh–south Odisha coast on October 28 morning. Five Odisha districts shut schools for two days as teams move in.
Updated: October 25, 2026, 10:30 AM IST
Quick Read
- The Bay of Bengal system becomes a deep depression today, October 25, and a cyclonic storm by Monday morning, October 26, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) says. Landfall is expected on the morning of October 28, between the north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha coasts.
- Schools, colleges and Anganwadi centres in Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri stay shut on October 28 and 29. Other district collectors will decide locally as the storm track firms up.
- Odisha has put 60 ODRAF teams, 17 NDRF teams and 225 fire service teams on alert, with a zero-casualty target set by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi. The exact landfall spot is still not fixed.
Odisha is on high alert this morning, and the reason is a storm that does not have a name yet but already has a date. The system over the Bay of Bengal is set to grow into a deep depression today and a cyclonic storm by Monday morning. By Wednesday morning, October 28, it should reach the coast near north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha. That is the IMD’s forecast, and the state government is acting on it now, not waiting for the storm to get a name.
The name, when the storm earns it, will be Arnab. Bangladesh put the name on the regional list, and it means “ocean” in Bengali, ABP Live reported. The IMD’s Bhubaneswar director, Manorama Mohanty, confirmed the name to the Times of India. But a name comes only when the system crosses the line into a cyclonic storm. Right now it is still a well-marked low-pressure area on its way up the ladder: depression today, deep depression next, then storm.
What Odisha has done so far
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi reviewed preparedness on Saturday and told officials to aim for zero casualties. That is a big word for a state that has lived through some of India’s worst storms, and it shapes every order that followed. The five southern districts closest to the expected track — Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri — will shut schools, colleges and Anganwadi centres on October 28 and 29, the Indian Express reported. Collectors in other districts can order closures too, based on how the rain and wind play out where they are.
Fishermen have been told not to go out to sea, and those already out have been asked to come back to shore. In Cuttack, puja committees have been asked to pull down decorative bamboo structures put up for Durga Puja, ABP Live reported. The Indravati reservoir in Nabarangpur opened two gates on Saturday as a precaution, releasing water at 133 cusecs, with the level at 640.9 metres against a full level of 642 metres.
For readers tracking the wider storm season, our explainer on why the Himalayan region shakes is a different kind of natural-disaster risk — and a reminder that October has been a rough month for the region. The cyclone story is separate, but the preparedness lesson is the same: warnings work only when people hear them early.
Where the rain and wind will hit
The IMD expects heavy to very heavy rain in several Odisha districts, with wind speeds of 70 to 90 kmph along the southern and coastal belt. ABP Live’s forecast note puts heavy to extremely heavy rain over coastal Andhra Pradesh and Odisha between October 27 and 29. The Times of India, quoting IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, put winds at 70 to 80 kmph, gusting to 90, from the morning of October 26. The small gap between those figures is normal at this stage — wind forecasts tighten as the storm forms. What every source agrees on is the direction: west-northwest, toward the Andhra-Odisha coast.
Andhra Pradesh is watching the same system just as closely. The chief minister’s office in Odisha said the storm was more likely to make landfall along the Andhra coast, the Indian Express reported.
Two visits, two different outcomes
The storm has already changed the calendar. President Droupadi Murmu’s two-day visit to Odisha on October 28 and 29 has been pushed back to November 4 and 5, the Indian Express reported. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, meanwhile, is still scheduled to visit Odisha today, Sunday, to open the Reserve Bank of India’s ₹169-crore data centre and Cybersecurity Training Institute in Bhubaneswar, The Hindu’s morning digest said, with his aircraft due around 4:10 pm. One visit moved, one going ahead — the difference is timing. The storm arrives Wednesday; Sunday is still clear.
Readers in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh should follow the IMD’s bulletins and their district collector’s orders, not social media forwards. School closure lists, evacuation orders and train or flight changes will come district by district over the next two days. The next hard update to watch is Monday morning: whether the system has become Cyclone Arnab, and where the track points then. That bulletin will matter more than any forecast written today.
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FAQ
When will Cyclone Arnab hit land? The IMD expects landfall on the morning of October 28, somewhere between the north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha coasts. The exact spot is not fixed yet.
Which schools are closed? Schools, colleges and Anganwadi centres in Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri are shut on October 28 and 29. Other districts will decide locally.
Is the storm named Arnab yet? Not officially. The name applies once the system becomes a cyclonic storm, which the IMD expects by Monday morning, October 26. Bangladesh contributed the name, which means “ocean” in Bengali.
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