More than half a dozen states in eastern India and some coastal regions of neighbouring Bangladesh were on Tuesday bracing for heavy rainfall from a "very severe cyclonic storm" that has formed in the Bay of Bengal.
Cyclone Hamoon was about 400km from the port city of Paradip in India’s Odisha state on Tuesday afternoon, and 550km south of Bangladesh, where it was expected to make landfall on Wednesday.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said Hamoon had intensified into a very severe cyclonic storm with wind speeds of 130kph.
“The impact will start from afternoon and hit the coast between Khepupara and Chittagong,” Mritunjay Mohapatra, the IMD's director general, told The National.
The cyclone has already brought heavy rainfall to Odisha, West Bengal, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and Assam states in India’s eastern and north-eastern regions.
“The coastal districts of West Bengal have recorded 9cm of rainfall today and the coastal districts in Odisha have received 5cm,” Mr Mohapatra said. He added that the rain would increase over Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and southern Assam on Tuesday into Wednesday.
"Wind speed of 40-50kph is expected tomorrow," he said on Tuesday.
“It will be a cyclonic storm when it hits Bangladesh but much adverse impact is not expected. However, heavy rain will continue and we're expecting a one to two-metre-high tidal surge."
Authorities in the Odisha and West Bengal have ordered the evacuation of people from low-lying areas in the event of heavy rain and asked fishermen not to go out to sea.
Hamoon was named by Iran, after the Farsi word for inland desert lakes or marshlands, under a convention established by the World Meteorological Organisation that allows countries to take turns naming storms in their regional grouping.
It is the second cyclone to affect India in the space of a week, after Cyclone Tej formed in the Arabian Sea off the country's west coast on October 21.
Tej, which brought rain and thunderstorms to India's southernmost states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, made landfall as a severe cyclone on the coast between Al Ghaidah in Yemen and Salalah in Oman around 2am on Tuesday.
Mr Mohapatra said the twin occurrence of cyclones was rare but not unknown.
“This is not related to climate change,” he said. "There is a global favourable environment for cyclone genesis. About seven cyclone genesis have taken place in the globe including Bay of Bengal, Arabian Sea, North Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. It is a random phenomenon that happens sometimes in different ocean basins."
Eight of the world's 10 deadliest tropical cyclones have originated in the Bay of Bengal, according to a list by Weather Underground.
Odisha, with 480km of coastline flanking the bay, is highly susceptible to the effects of such storms.
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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Five expert hiking tips
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
Sanju
Produced: Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Vicky Kaushal, Paresh Rawal, Anushka Sharma, Manish’s Koirala, Dia Mirza, Sonam Kapoor, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani
Rating: 3.5 stars
New process leads to panic among jobseekers
As a UAE-based travel agent who processes tourist visas from the Philippines, Jennifer Pacia Gado is fielding a lot of calls from concerned travellers just now. And they are all asking the same question.
“My clients are mostly Filipinos, and they [all want to know] about good conduct certificates,” says the 34-year-old Filipina, who has lived in the UAE for five years.
Ms Gado contacted the Philippines Embassy to get more information on the certificate so she can share it with her clients. She says many are worried about the process and associated costs – which could be as high as Dh500 to obtain and attest a good conduct certificate from the Philippines for jobseekers already living in the UAE.
“They are worried about this because when they arrive here without the NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] clearance, it is a hassle because it takes time,” she says.
“They need to go first to the embassy to apply for the application of the NBI clearance. After that they have go to the police station [in the UAE] for the fingerprints. And then they will apply for the special power of attorney so that someone can finish the process in the Philippines. So it is a long process and more expensive if you are doing it from here.”
