Cyclone Montha Weakens After Landfall; IMD Issues Heavy Rain Alerts Across Multiple States

Cyclone Montha has significantly weakened after making landfall on the Andhra Pradesh coast near Kakinada during the midnight of October 28-29, 2025. The severe cyclonic storm has now transformed into a well-marked low-pressure area over east Vidarbha and adjoining south Chhattisgarh as of Thursday, October 30. Despite the weakening, the India Meteorological Department continues to issue heavy to extremely heavy rainfall warnings for multiple states, including Telangana, West Bengal, Bihar, Gujarat, and Jharkhand.

Cyclone Montha Current Location and Path

As of 5:30 AM on October 30, the depression (remnant of Severe Cyclonic Storm Montha) over south Chhattisgarh and adjoining Vidarbha weakened into a well-marked low-pressure area over east Vidarbha and adjoining south Chhattisgarh. The system is likely to move northwards towards East Madhya Pradesh and adjoining north Chhattisgarh, weakening further into a low-pressure area during the next 24 hours.​

Cyclone Montha made landfall near Narsapur between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam between 11:30 PM on October 28 and 12:30 AM on October 29 with wind speeds of 90-100 km/h gusting to 110 km/h. After crossing the coast, the system moved north-northwestwards and progressively weakened from a severe cyclonic storm into a cyclonic storm, then a deep depression, and finally into a well-marked low-pressure area.​

Cyclone Montha Weather Impact

The storm has caused significant damage across multiple states. In Andhra Pradesh, two people died, with standing crops in 38,000 hectares and horticulture crops in 1.38 lakh hectares destroyed. Lakes overflowed, rivers swelled, trees and power lines crashed, and hundreds were rescued from flooded areas.​

Telangana remains under red alert with the IMD forecasting very heavy to extremely heavy rainfall, thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds (40-50 km/h) in districts including Rajanna Sircilla, Karimnagar, Mahabubabad, Warangal, and Jangaon. Warangal received 91 mm of rainfall on Wednesday.​

West Bengal faces an orange alert for October 31, with heavy to very heavy rainfall expected in Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, Cooch Behar, Darjeeling, and Alipurduar. The IMD has warned of possible localised flooding and landslides in hilly areas.​

Rainfall Forecast

The IMD has issued an orange alert for extremely heavy rainfall over Bihar, Saurashtra, and Kutch for October 30-31. Heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected over Chhattisgarh, coastal Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana, West Bengal, Sikkim, East Madhya Pradesh, East Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Vidarbha. Authorities have urged caution in low-lying areas as waterlogging remains possible.