Cyclone Arnab made a prolonged landfall on India's east coast on Wednesday, killing at least three people in Andhra Pradesh, while Mukesh Ambani's Jio Platforms jumped more than 21 per cent on its stock market debut and a new Lancet report ranked India among the countries most exposed to heatwaves.
Cyclone Arnab
At least three people were killed in Andhra Pradesh, local media cited authorities saying, as Cyclone Arnab moved inland after making landfall. The storm weakened from a "very severe cyclonic storm" to a "severe cyclonic storm" after a prolonged landfall, and is expected to become a "cyclonic storm" and then a "deep depression" by evening.
National Disaster Response Force Inspector General Narendra Singh Bundela said: "North of Andhra Pradesh and the southern part of Odisha have been the most affected due to Cyclone Arnab. Strong winds and rainfall are being witnessed in a few districts of the two states." He added: "Andhra Pradesh has been the most affected... we have been informed that trees have been uprooted, 31 houses of various types have been damaged and three persons have been killed."
Nearly 40 NDRF teams have been deployed along the east coast, Bundela said. Together, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha evacuated nearly 100,000 people from vulnerable regions before the storm. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu credited advance precautionary measures for preventing casualties so far, during a teleconference to monitor the storm's impact.
Residents described severe conditions. "There was a cyclone here three years ago, but the water didn't rise this much," a 35-year-old local resident said. Rajeshwari, 65, who had been taken to a government-run shelter near Kakinada, said: "Our homes get flooded, and we have to stay in the water." She added: "So the government provided us with a bus, and we came here to shelter."
Heat report
The Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change ranked India among the top countries where elderly people and infants are most exposed to heatwaves, alongside China, the United States and Russia. The report estimated that extreme heat cost Indian workers $174 billion in potential earnings in 2025, or 4.2 per cent of the nation's GDP, with 54 per cent of the losses coming from agriculture.
"Increasing heat exposure is affecting health, physical activity, sleep and labor capacity in India, with substantial consequences for livelihoods, particularly in agriculture," the report said.
The 10th edition of the report, published ahead of the COP31 climate summit in November, brought together 146 researchers from 30 countries. It recorded 710,000 heat-related deaths in 2023, with more than 70 per cent of that toll linked to human-caused climate change, and called for climate change to be formally recognized and addressed as a global health emergency.
Jio Platforms listing
Jio Platforms, a Reliance Industries-backed digital services company owned by India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani, listed on Indian stock exchanges with a premium of over 21 per cent, instantly making it the second most valuable company on the exchanges.
Jio's telecommunications business serves over 530 million customers and is backed by Meta Platforms and Alphabet's Google. Its user numbers are second only to China Mobile on the basis of single-country subscribers. The listing, the first for the Reliance conglomerate in two decades, furthers Ambani's plan to turn Reliance from an oil-and-chemicals conglomerate into an "everything company" spanning consumer products and technology.
The listing was attended by the Ambani family, and major Indian newspapers carried front-page ads from Reliance Jio saying "Thank you, India." India has become the world's busiest IPO market this year in terms of the number of deals, with 246 listings so far, though it ranked fourth by money raised at $13.5 billion, behind the United States, mainland China and Hong Kong, LSEG data showed.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The cyclone has already killed at least three people, damaged houses and disrupted power, flights and trains in two Indian states, and nearly 100,000 people were evacuated before it hit.
- The Lancet Countdown finds India among the countries most exposed to heatwaves, with an estimated $174 billion in lost earnings in 2025 and agriculture taking 54 per cent of the losses, adding pressure ahead of the COP31 climate summit.
- Jio Platforms' debut marks a milestone for India's busiest-ever IPO year and for Reliance's shift from oil and chemicals into digital services, with a telecom arm serving more than 530 million customers.
Background
India's east coast is regularly exposed to cyclones forming in the Bay of Bengal, and evacuating residents from low-lying coastal areas is a standard precautionary measure before storms make landfall. The Lancet Countdown is an annual collaboration that assesses how climate change affects health around the world. Reliance, long known as an oil and chemicals conglomerate, has been diversifying into consumer and digital businesses, and Jio's telecom arm has become one of the world's largest carriers by single-country subscribers.
Key Perspectives
National Disaster Response Force: says Andhra Pradesh and southern Odisha are the most affected, with trees uprooted, 31 houses damaged and three people killed, and nearly 40 NDRF teams have been deployed.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu: credited advance precautionary measures for preventing casualties so far.
Lancet Countdown report: says increasing heat exposure is affecting health, physical activity, sleep and labor capacity in India, with substantial consequences for livelihoods, particularly in agriculture, and calls for climate change to be treated as a global health emergency.
Rajeshwari, a 65-year-old cyclone evacuee: says her home gets flooded and she has to stay in the water, but the government provided a bus to take her to shelter.
What to Watch
- Whether Cyclone Arnab weakens as forecast into a "cyclonic storm" and then a "deep depression" by evening, and how much damage the two states ultimately record.
- The COP31 climate summit in November, where the Lancet report's call for climate change to be treated as a global health emergency will be in focus.
- How Jio Platforms trades after its debut and whether India's record run of IPOs continues.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 10 supported.
Show each claim
- Partly supportedCyclone Arnab killed three people in India.DW English: “At least three people were killed in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh”
- SupportedJio Platforms made its stock-market debut with a rise of more than 21 per cent.DW English: “Shares of Jio Platforms, a Reliance Industries-backed digital services company owned by India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani, listed on the India stock exchanges with a premium of over 21%.”
- Partly supportedThe Lancet Countdown ranked India among the countries most exposed to heatwaves.DW English: “India ranked among the top countries where the elderly and infants are most exposed to heatwaves”
- SupportedCyclone Arnab made a prolonged landfall on Andhra Pradesh’s coast on Wednesday.DW English: “Cyclone Arnab makes prolonged landfall along coast of Andhra Pradesh”
- SupportedAt least three people were killed in Andhra Pradesh in the storm.DW English: “At least three people were killed in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, local media cited authorities saying”
- SupportedBundela said that northern Andhra Pradesh and southern Odisha were the most affected, with strong winds and rain in some districts.DW English: ““North of Andhra Pradesh and the southern part of Odisha have been the most affected due to Cyclone Arnab. Strong winds and rainfall are being witnessed in a few districts of the two states,” Bundela said.”
- SupportedBundela said trees had been uprooted, 31 houses damaged and three people killed in Andhra Pradesh.DW English: ““Andhra Pradesh has been the most affected... we have been informed that trees have been uprooted, 31 houses of various types have been damaged and three persons have been killed,” he said”
- SupportedThe storm weakened from a very severe cyclonic storm to a severe cyclonic storm after its prolonged landfall.DW English: “The storm lost some speed after a prolonged lanfall, downgrading it to a “severe cyclonic storm” from a “very severe cyclonic storm.””
- SupportedNearly 40 NDRF teams had been deployed along India’s east coast.DW English: “The IG said nearly 40 NDRF teams had been deployed to regions along India's east coast to manage the impact of the cyclone.”
- SupportedAndhra Pradesh and Odisha evacuated nearly 100,000 people from vulnerable regions before the storm.DW English: “Together, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha evacuated nearly 100,000 people from vulnerable regions in preperation of the storm.”
- SupportedExtreme heat cost Indian workers $174 billion in potential earnings in 2025.DW English: “Extreme heat cost Indian workers an estimated $174 billion (€156.5 billion) in potential earnings in 2025.”
- SupportedThe report recorded 710,000 heat-related deaths in 2023, with more than 70 per cent linked to human-caused climate change.DW English: “It said there were a record 710,000 heat-related deaths in 2023 with more than 70% of that toll linked to human-caused climate change.”