As Andaman & Nicobar Islands Prep Up for Cyclone Asani, Here's How the Storm Got its Name

The deep depression adjoining Andaman and Nicobar Islands which if and when turns into a cyclone or cyclonic storm will be called ‘Asani’ is set to bring heavy rainfall to the archipelago that already has been receiving downpour for the past few days with the weather system approaching the shores.

The low-pressure area that first formed in South East Bay of Bengal last week is expected to intensify into a cyclonic storm by Monday evening.

Cyclone Asani will be this year’s first cyclonic storm and also the first to form in the month of March in nearly two decades.

But how did the cyclonic storm get its name? 

Cyclone Asani was given its name by Sri Lanka and is one among 169 names in the IMD list of tropical cyclones over the North Indian Ocean.

The word Asani reportedly translates to ‘wrath’ in Sinhalese, one of the two official languages in Sri Lanka.

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Why did Sri Lanka name Cyclone Asani

Sri Lanka is among the 13 member countries in the world meteorological organization (WMO)/United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia panel that decided to prepare a fresh list of names of tropical cyclones at a session in 2018.

Worldwide there are six regional specialised meteorological centres (RSMCs) and five regional Tropical Cyclone Warning Centres (TCWCs) mandated for issuing advisories and naming of tropical cyclones.

The IMD is one of the six RSMCs to provide tropical cyclone and storm surge advisories to 13 member countries under WMO/ESCAP Panel including Bangladesh, India, Iran, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

RSMC, New Delhi is also mandated to name the Tropical Cyclones developing over the north Indian Ocean (NIO) including the Bay of Bengal (BoB) and the Arabian Sea (AS).

Why are cyclones named

As per a government press release, naming cyclones helps to identify each individual cyclone, create awareness of its development, and remove confusion in case of simultaneous occurrence of tropical cyclones over a region.

Naming a cyclone also helps authorities involved in dealing with them and individuals remember a tropical cyclone easily, the release says, adding that it also aids in rapidly and effectively disseminating warnings to much wider audience.

The current list of names has a total of 169 names mentions 13 names each from 13 WMO/ESCAP member countries.

The names are listed country-wise, with the countries in alphabetical order. The names are picked up sequentially from the list.

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