In this week’s Skymet Podcast, AVM (Retd.) G.P. Sharma, President of Meteorology & Climate Change at Skymet, discusses in detail the formation and trajectory of the upcoming Cyclonic Storm “Montha (or Maantha)” over the Arabian Sea. The system is expected to develop as a low-pressure area around October 18–19 over the southeast Arabian Sea and Lakshadweep region, gradually intensifying into a severe cyclonic storm. While the storm is unlikely to make landfall along the Indian coasts of Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, or Gujarat, it may bring strong winds and light to moderate rainfall to these coastal areas. The Sokotra Islands, Somalia, and Yemen coasts are likely to experience more severe impacts. The episode also touches on the withdrawal of the Southwest Monsoon and the onset of the Northeast Monsoon, both expected to occur on the same day — October 16, marking a rare meteorological event.