NEW DELHI: Cyclone Tauktae on Sunday intensified into a “very severe cyclonic storm” over Eastcentral Arabian Sea, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. It is very likely to intensify further during the next 12 hours, and reach the coast of Gujarat on May 17. As a precautionary measure, rescue teams have been deployed in six states — Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and Goa — which would likely be in direct line of threat of the cyclone.
While the internet may be abuzz with notes of caution, it also made many realise that a lot goes in a name. Cyclone Tauktae’s (pronounced Tau’Te) name originates from a Burmese word which translates to gecko — a “highly vocal lizard”. The cyclone was named by neighbouring country Myanmar.
#CycloneTauktae will hit Indian coasts soon. Do you know what it’s name means. ‘Tauktae' (pronounced as Tau’Te), a name given by #Myanmar, means highly vocal lizard #GECKO.
The cyclone names are given by countries on rotation basis in region.@mcbbsr pic.twitter.com/AakbZva8gr
— Parveen Kaswan, IFS (@ParveenKaswan) May 15, 2021
Cyclones are officially named by one of the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) warning centres based across the globe. The WMO/United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Panel on Tropical Cyclones (PTC) includes 13 countries — India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, the Maldives, Oman, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
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