The depression is likely to move in a northeasterly direction further and weaken gradually, the official BSS news agency quoting a special bulletin of the centre said here.

The original forecast said the storm would cross the Sundarbans at noon. Weathermen later said it would hit south-western Bangladesh in the evening.

The storm's turning into a land depression has come as a great relief for the Sheikh Hasina government which is fighting to mitigate the sufferings of the millions affected by the century's worst floods. Large parts of Bangladesh, including the capital Dhaka, have been experiencing rainfall since last evening as the storm was approaching the coast.

The ports of Mongla and Chittagong, which had hoisted dangersignals ten and nine respectively lowered them to four and three respectively. Authorities however asked thousands of fishermen to stay on land because the seas are rough.

The Red Crescent, the Islamic equivalent of the Red Cross, had posted nearly 33,000 volunteers along the coast where at least ten million people live. The region has more than 1,200 cyclone shelters for the residents.

An official at the disaster and relief ministry said a large number of residents of the coastal district who were evacuated to safety would start returning to their home soon. April-May and October-November are the periods when storms usually hit Bangladesh. The storm centered around 260 km southwest of Khulna at 9.30 1m IST was moving at a speed of 25 kph towards the Bangladesh coast and was expected to slam the Sundarbans coast near Hiron Point.