Cyclone Arnab brings drizzle and cooler weather to Madhya Pradesh; nine districts on alert for heavy rain and gusty winds

The weakening cyclone would not enter Madhya Pradesh and would move towards Bihar from neighbouring Chhattisgarh.

PTI, Oct 29, 2026, Bhopal: Drizzle and a chill swept large parts of Madhya Pradesh on Thursday, with nine districts in the eastern part of the state likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall accompanied by gusty winds of 40–50 kmph later in the day due to Cyclone Arnab, an official said.

The cyclone has weakened and moved over Jagdalpur in neighbouring Chhattisgarh, he said.

The state capital, Bhopal, also witnessed steady drizzle.

The nine districts of eastern Madhya Pradesh — Sidhi, Singrauli, Rewa, Mauganj, Satna, Maihar, Shahdol, Umaria and Anuppur — are likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall in the next couple of hours, India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) Bhopal centre meteorologist VS Yadav said.

These districts may also experience gusty winds of 40–50 kmph, he said.

Yadav said the weakening cyclone would not enter Madhya Pradesh and would move towards Bihar from neighbouring Chhattisgarh.

The weather in eastern Madhya Pradesh is expected to clear on Saturday, while the effects of the weather system will persist on Friday, he said.

The system is unlikely to affect the Malwa region of the state, he added.

Amarkantak in eastern Madhya Pradesh recorded the highest rainfall of 59 mm by 8.30 am on Thursday, while Chourai in Chhindwara district received 28 mm during the same period, Yadav said.

The cyclone was located over Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh at the time of the update. It had entered Andhra Pradesh after originating over the Bay of Bengal and weakened after moving over land, he said.

The system had weakened into a deep depression and subsequently into a depression, Yadav explained.

He said Arnab was a severe cyclonic storm when it reached Visakhapatnam on October 27. At 5.30 pm on October 28, it weakened from a severe cyclonic storm to a cyclonic storm, with wind speeds of 85 kmph. By 11.30 pm, it had weakened into a deep depression, with wind speeds dropping to 58 kmph.

At 5.30 am on Thursday, it weakened further into a depression, with wind speeds of 45 kmph. The system is expected to weaken into a well-marked low-pressure area by Thursday evening, the meteorologist added.