India has a long coastline of 8,000 km, which is exposed to tropical cyclones originating from Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea .On an average, about five to six tropical cyclones form in the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea every year, out of which two to three may be severe.
Cyclones have the highest predictability among all the disasters. Earthquakes are caused by volcanic activity or geological activity and thus is very difficult to predict.
The system of forecasting cyclones is quite well developed. The weather forecasters (meteorologists) are able to detect the formation and subsequent movement of cyclones on weather charts that they prepare regularly based on observations of atmospheric pressure, temperature, humidity and winds.
Cyclone warnings are' issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) through its Area Cyclone Warning Centres (Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai) and Cyclone Warning Centres (Ahmadabad, Bhubaneswar and Visakhapatnam).
Earthquakes are caused by the shaking shifting of the Earth's surface. They occur suddenly and their impact is limited in terms of time and space. This means that only certain places in a country may experience an earthquake and it is seldom felt for more than a few minutes.