1982–83 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season

The 1982–83 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone season was the least active cyclone season in the basin since 1961–1962. There were six systems that were named, although three of them – Arilisy, Clera, and Fely – failed to intensify beyond tropical depression status. No storms reached tropical cyclone status, according to the official warning agency for the basin, Météo-France, although the two strongest storms – Bemany and Elinah – peaked just below that intensity. The first named storm, Arilisy, formed on October 27, and dissipated without having affected land. However, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC), which is an unofficial warning center for the basin, briefly tracked a tropical depression in July. The next storm was Bemany, which passed east of Mauritius near peak intensity in early December. Tropical Depression Clera existed briefly in the middle of September, and Tropical Storm Dadafy moved across the eastern portion of the basin in late December.

The only deadly storm of the season was Elinah, which formed on January 9 in the Mozambique Channel. It moved to the southwest and was intensifying when it struck Comoros on January 11. There, high winds and waves heavily damaged banana and coconut crops, and the storm damaged or destroyed 4,357 buildings. High waves knocked 40 people off a pier on Anjouan, killing 33 of them. Damage in Comoros totaled $23.1 million (1983 USD). Elinah intensified before brushing the coast of Mozambique, and it dissipated on January 9. Aside from a weak storm classified by the JTWC in February, there was minimal activity for several months. The final storm of the season was Tropical Depression Fely, which dropped moderate rainfall in eastern Madagascar in late June.