People looking for reliable information during cyclone season now have another official digital tool to consult. The India Meteorological Department has launched an interactive Cyclone Warning and Marine Weather Services Decision Support System, bringing several types of cyclone and marine-weather information together on a public-facing map.
The platform was dedicated to the nation on October 12 during the IMD's pre-cyclone exercise meeting for the October–December 2026 post-monsoon season. It is designed to make weather information more useful to the public and to organisations that must prepare for severe weather.
Editorial Insight
Key Highlights
Important points readers should notice.
Issue/Event: IMD launched a public-facing Cyclone Warning and Marine Weather Services Decision Support System.
Location: India, with information relevant to coastal areas, marine users and districts potentially affected by cyclone-related hazards.
Authority/Organisation: India Meteorological Department under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
Action Taken: The interactive platform was dedicated to the nation on October 12, 2026, and made available online for public use.
Impact: Users can explore cyclone tracks, intensity, winds, rainfall warnings and storm-surge information to support awareness and preparedness. Official warnings and local instructions remain essential.
The dashboard displays information such as observed and forecast cyclone tracks, estimated intensity, wind distribution, district-level rainfall warnings and storm-surge information. It also includes rainfall forecasts for river catchments, helping users understand that a cyclone's effects can extend beyond the area where its centre is expected to travel.
The platform is particularly relevant during the post-monsoon cyclone season, when weather systems over the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea can affect coastal areas, fishing activity, ports, transport and inland districts.
However, the dashboard should not be treated as a replacement for official warning bulletins, evacuation instructions or emergency services. Its purpose is to support awareness and decision-making by bringing relevant information into one place.
Editorial Analysis
Why This Matters
Weather information is most useful when people can connect a forecast to decisions about travel, work, fishing, evacuation and household preparation. A single interactive platform can make it easier to examine multiple hazards together. The new dashboard also reinforces an important safety principle: a cyclone's effects are not limited to the line showing its projected track. Heavy rain, strong winds, coastal flooding and river-related hazards may affect different locations in different ways.
Where can people access the new IMD dashboard?
The public dashboard is available at:
Official dashboard: https://dss.imd.gov.in/dwr_img/GIS/marine.php
Users can also access IMD's main website at https://mausam.imd.gov.in/ and the Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre's website at https://rsmcnewdelhi.imd.gov.in/.
The dashboard is an interactive web-based system rather than simply a static weather image. Users can explore the available map information to understand a weather system and its potential impacts.
For practical use, people should first identify the district, coastal stretch or marine area relevant to their travel or daily activities. They should then examine the latest available forecast and warning information rather than relying on an old screenshot shared through social media.
What information does the dashboard show?
1. Cyclone track
The track information helps users see where a cyclone has been observed and the forecast path shown by the meteorological system. The forecast can change as new observations become available.
A projected track is not a precise promise that the storm will follow one line. The area around a forecast path matters because hazardous winds and rain can extend far from the centre.
2. Forecast intensity
Cyclone intensity information helps users understand how a system is developing. Changes in intensity can affect the potential severity of wind and other hazards, but local impacts also depend on the storm's size, speed, direction and distance from land.
3. Wind distribution
Wind information helps indicate which areas may face stronger winds. Wind-related hazards can damage structures, disrupt power and transport services, and make travel dangerous.
Residents should not wait for visible storm conditions before following official safety instructions.
4. District-wise rainfall warnings
Heavy rainfall can cause flooding, waterlogging and landslides, including in places away from the coast. District-level warnings can help people understand whether their area is included in a forecast hazard zone.
Rainfall forecasts do not guarantee that every location within a district will receive the same amount of rain. Local terrain and the movement of weather systems can produce different conditions.
5. Storm-surge information
A storm surge is an abnormal rise in sea level associated with a storm, above the normal predicted tide. It can inundate low-lying coastal areas and pose serious risks to people, property and infrastructure.
Users should take storm-surge warnings seriously and follow evacuation or movement restrictions issued by local authorities.
6. River-catchment rainfall forecasts
Heavy rain can affect rivers and catchments well inland from a cyclone's landfall location. This information can help users understand why flooding risks may extend beyond the immediate coastal region.
People living near rivers should also monitor official flood warnings and local instructions rather than relying only on the cyclone track.
How to use the dashboard before travelling
The new system may be useful for people planning journeys to coastal destinations, fishing-related activities or travel through areas exposed to severe weather.
Start by checking the latest official forecast for the area you intend to visit. Review the cyclone track, rainfall warnings and wind information, then check whether local authorities have issued travel restrictions, evacuation orders or advisories.
If a district is under a severe-weather warning, reconsider non-essential travel and allow for disruption to roads, public transport, ports and flights. Conditions can change quickly, so recheck the latest official information before departure.
A destination that appears outside the projected cyclone track may still experience heavy rain, strong winds or rough seas. The forecast track alone is not enough to determine whether travel is safe.
What should coastal residents and fishers check?
People in coastal areas should pay attention to more than the storm's centre. Strong winds, coastal flooding, storm surge and heavy rainfall can create different hazards across a wide region.
Fishers should consult official marine forecasts and fishing advisories for their relevant sea area. They should follow restrictions issued by the authorities and should not use a general land-based weather map as permission to go to sea.
Port operators, vessel operators and other maritime users should rely on the marine warnings and operational instructions relevant to their activity.
Residents should prepare essential medicines, drinking water, charged phones, important documents and emergency supplies when advised to do so. Where evacuation is ordered, following official directions is more important than attempting to interpret the dashboard independently.
Does the new platform predict cyclones before they form?
The dashboard presents weather observations, forecasts and warning information. It should not be described as a tool that can guarantee the prediction of every cyclone or eliminate uncertainty.
Meteorological forecasts are updated as observations and modelling information become available. The forecast track, intensity and expected impacts can change over time.
That is why users should check the latest update and official warning bulletin rather than treating one map as final. The platform supports decisions, but emergency preparedness still depends on timely warnings, reliable communication and action by residents and authorities.
Why is the launch important before the post-monsoon season?
India's post-monsoon season runs from October through December, a period when cyclonic systems can develop over surrounding seas and threaten coastal communities.
Bringing multiple weather products into one interactive platform can help users connect information that might otherwise be viewed separately. A cyclone track, for example, is more useful when considered alongside rainfall, wind and storm-surge information.
The platform may also help different agencies coordinate their understanding of potential impacts. The launch took place during a pre-cyclone exercise meeting attended by disaster-management bodies, scientific organisations and other stakeholders.
The usefulness of the system will ultimately depend on how clearly users can interpret the information, how regularly it is updated and whether warnings lead to timely protective action.
