50-60 Kmph wind expected in Bangladesh, Meghalaya for next 3 hours: IMD

India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director-General Dr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra on Thursday said the wind having the speed of 50-60 Kmph is expected in Bangladesh and Meghalaya for the next three hours.

Addressing a press conference with National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) Director General SN Pradhan, here, Dr Mohapatra said this wind is not expected to cause any structural damage.

"The wind with a speed of 50-60 Kmph is expected in Bangladesh and Meghalaya for the next 3 hours. This is not expected to cause any structural damage, it can at most affect some trees," Mohapatra said.

Dr Mohapatra said that cyclone Amphan has no adverse impact over West Bengal now.

"Rains are expected in Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh. Very to very heavy rainfall is expected in Assam, especially in the western part and in Meghalaya. Winds are expected in Assam and Meghalaya, which can cause damage to trees. Cyclone Amphan has no adverse impact over West Bengal now," said he.

Dr Mohapatra said the impact of cyclone Amphan has been predicted successfully.

"We had predicted very high wind speed in Kolkata and adjoining districts. As said, cyclone Amphan made landfall between 3.30 pm and 5.30 pm near Sunderbans, and wind speed too was between 155 and 165 Kmph, as predicted," he said.

"We have been tracking cyclone Amphan through Doppler Weather Radar, right from the time we observed it in Visakhapatnam Doppler Radar. We used the latest technology and models and were able to give correct and successful forecast," he said.

The IMD DG said the observed track of cyclone Amphan has been forecast very well by them, starting from 3.5 days before the onset, enabling various agencies to respond well and minimise the damage.

"Cyclone Amphan has weakened from a super cyclonic storm to a cyclonic storm today morning. It crossed the India-Bangladesh border at 11.30 pm yesterday. It has now weakened to a deep depression and centred over Bangladesh. There is no threat of cyclone in Bangladesh now," he added.

Cyclone Amphan made landfall in coastal regions of Odisha and West Bengal on May 20. Balasore district received heavy rainfall and strong winds due to the cyclone on Wednesday.

( With inputs from ANI )