Cyclone Yaas, which hit Odisha and West Bengal in May 2021, originated over the:

Yaas was a very severe cyclonic storm that formed over the east-central Bay of Bengal in May 2021. It made landfall on the north Odisha coast, near Balasore (south of Dhamra port), on 26 May 2021.

Impact of Cyclone Yaas:

• It brought very heavy rainfall and strong winds, with speeds of about 130 to 140 km per hour, to Odisha and West Bengal.
• Coinciding with a full moon, it caused a high storm surge, flooding coastal villages in West Bengal, including Digha, and in Odisha.
• Large-scale evacuation of more than a million people helped keep the number of deaths low.
• It also affected Jharkhand and Bihar as it weakened and moved inland.

The name:

• The name "Yaas" was given by Oman and refers to the jasmine flower.
• It came just about a week after Cyclone Tauktae hit the west coast of India.

Why the Bay of Bengal has more cyclones:

• The Bay of Bengal has higher sea surface temperatures, which provide more energy for cyclones.
• It receives large amounts of fresh water from big rivers, which forms a warm, less salty surface layer that helps cyclones intensify.
• Remnants of typhoons from the western Pacific often cross into the Bay and redevelop.
• Its funnel shape and the low-lying coasts of Odisha, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Bangladesh make storm surges especially destructive.

Major cyclones of the Bay of Bengal:

• The 1999 Odisha super cyclone, one of the deadliest in India.
• Phailin (2013), Hudhud (2014), Fani (2019) and Amphan (2020).
• Amphan was the first super cyclone in the Bay of Bengal after 1999.

Disaster preparedness:

• Odisha's cyclone management, with early warnings, cyclone shelters and timely evacuation, is internationally praised for saving lives.
• The India Meteorological Department provides cyclone warnings for the North Indian Ocean.

Why not the other options?

• ✗The Arabian Sea produced Cyclone Tauktae a week earlier.
• ✗The Persian Gulf and the Red Sea are not where Yaas formed.