Cyclone Nivar has turned into a Severe Cyclonic Storm and is
heading west-northwestwards with a speed of six km/hour since the past six
hours, news agency ANI tweeted quoting Indian Meteorological Department.

According to the tweet, the Met Department further estimated
the storm to be centred over southwest Bay of Bengal at 2.30am on Thursday.

In a video posted later by the news agency, the Bay of
Bengal is seen in a rough state near the Puducherry coast as waves crash onto
the rocky surface, hinting at the severity of the cyclone.

Nivar is expected to make landfall between Karaikal and
Mamallapuram later on Wednesday.

According to estimates by the IMD, Chennai/Meenambakkam
received a total of 120 mm rainfall from 8:30 AM on Tuesday till 5:30 AM on
Wednesday.

Earlier on Tuesday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K
Palaniswami announced a statewide public holiday on Wednesday in view of the
cyclone.

Read more: Cyclone Nivar: Tamil Nadu CM declares public holiday on Wednesday

NDRF informed on Tuesday that they had deployed 12 teams in
Tamil Nadu, 2 in Puducherry, one in Karaikal, one in Nellore, one in Chittoor, as
well as having eight teams pre-positioned in Vizag – making up a total of 22
teams on ground as well as eight teams on standby, for relief work.

The Met department has expected wind speeds to go up to
90-100 km/hour, with gusts reaching up to 110 km/hour.

Read more: How severely can Cyclone ‘Nivar’ damage Tamil Nadu

Nivar is going to be the second cyclone in the north Indian
Ocean region within a week and the second severe cyclone of the year after Amphan,
which hit West Bengal during the month of May this year.