In this special report, India Today Bureau Chief Pramod Madhav explains the trajectory of Cyclone Ditwa using a rare 3D relief map from 1983 located at the Regional Meteorological Centre in Chennai. Describing the map as a relic that has ‘stood the test of time for 42 years’, Madhav illustrates how the terrain of Sri Lanka and the Western Ghats influences the cyclone’s movement parallel to the Tamil Nadu coast. The report details the storm’s impact on Sri Lanka, where it remained stationary for a day, and analyzes why it is expected to weaken into a depression rather than making a severe landfall near Chennai or Puducherry.