IMD released list of 169 new names of Tropical Cyclones

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has released 169 new names for the tropical cyclones in the Indian Ocean Region.

Highlights

• The names were contributed by 13 countries namely India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Thailand, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Iran. 
• The decision to create new list of cyclones was taken during the 45^th session of Panel on Tropical Cyclones (PTC) held by World Meteorological Organization.

Rules in fixing names

The names should have the following rules

• The proposed names should be neutral to cultures, politics, gender and religious beliefs
• The name should not hurt the sentiments of the group of population in the world
• The name should not be rude or cruel in nature
• The PTC has rights to reject the names suggested by the countries
• The name should be short with less than 8 characters and easy to pronounce.

Regional Specialize Meteorological Centre

• The RSMC in New Delhi is responsible to name the cyclones in the region of Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea. 
• The suggestion of names of cyclones in these regions including Northern Indian is given by countries such as India, Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Pakistan, Oman, Sri Lanka and Thailand.