Tens of Thousands evacuated in India Amid Cyclone

India has evacuated nearly 50,000 people to relief shelters ahead of the arrival of Cyclone Montha, which is rapidly strengthening over the Bay of Bengal and expected to make landfall on Tuesday.

Authorities have warned of powerful winds and heavy rainfall along the country’s eastern coast as the cyclone approaches. Emergency workers have been called back from leave, while schools and universities in coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha have been ordered to close.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Cyclone Montha is likely to intensify into a severe storm by Tuesday before crossing the Andhra Pradesh coast later in the day.

Evacuation operations have already begun in Kakinada district, where local disaster management teams are relocating families from low-lying areas. Officials expect up to 3.9 million people in Andhra Pradesh to be affected by the cyclone’s impact.

The eastern coast of India frequently experiences powerful cyclones between April and December. One of the deadliest, which struck Odisha in October 1999, claimed nearly 10,000 lives, marking one of the worst natural disasters in the nation’s history.

In neighboring Nepal, authorities have issued warnings for heavy rainfall and snowfall from Tuesday through Friday, urging trekkers to exercise caution. Flooding and landslides caused by persistent rain have already killed 53 people across the country this month.