Cyclone Montha: School Holidays Declared in Andhra Pradesh on October 27, 28, and 29

With the India Meteorological Department (IMD) warning of heavy to very heavy rainfall under the influence of Cyclone Montha, several district administrations in Andhra Pradesh have directed school managements to declare holidays.

According to reports, schools in East Godavari, Annamayya, and Kadapa districts will remain closed on October 27 and 28.

In NTR, Bapatla, Krishna, and Guntur districts, school managements have declared holidays on October 27, 28, and 29.

The District Collector of Dr BR Ambedkar Konaseema district has instructed school managements to declare holidays depending on the intensity of the rainfall.

Several other districts are also likely to announce holidays over the next few days, as heavy to very heavy rains have been forecast across Andhra Pradesh till October 29.

A red alert has been issued for Bapatla, YSR, Prakasam, Nellore, Tirupati, and Annamayya districts, while Nandyal, Chittoor, Palnadu, Guntur, Krishna, East Godavari, and Konaseema districts are under an orange alert.

According to the IMD, the depression over the Bay of Bengal is expected to intensify into a deep depression by Saturday evening (October 26) and further strengthen into a cyclonic storm over the southwest and adjoining west-central Bay of Bengal by Sunday morning (October 27).

The system is projected to gain strength as it moves northwestwards and later north-northwestwards, turning into a severe cyclonic storm by Monday morning (October 28). Cyclone Montha is likely to make landfall between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam around midnight on October 28.

At the time of landfall, heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected in Kakinada, Godavari, Eluru, Guntur, Palnadu, Prakasam, and YSR districts. The IMD has warned of rainfall up to 20 cm and wind speeds reaching 90–100 kmph.