The Indian Meteorological Department has announced that Cyclone AMPHAN has turned into a ‘super cyclone storm’ this morning. While the cyclone is expected to make a landfall in Bengal on Wednesday, coastal state Odisha has also been put on alert by the authorities.
While heavy rainfall is expected in Sikkim, Meghalaya and Assam as well, in Kerala, although the state does not come in the path of the storm, nine districts have been put on alert. Despite not being in the direct path of the cyclone, the southern state is expected to receive heavy rainfall, accompanied by strong winds.
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On that note, here are 10 things you must now about the latest developments regarding Cyclone AMPHAN.
- The Home Ministry has announced that PM Modi has chaired a high-level meeting today, at 4pm, to review the preparedness by the authorities. NDMA will also be part of the meeting.
- While 12 districts are under close watch, as per state officials, Odisha is set to evacuate close to 1 million people due to the cyclone.
- CM Naveen Patnaik said: “As always, saving lives is our priority. We should put our best efforts to save every precious human life.” The state has set a ‘zero-casualty’ target, and timely relocation is said to be the major goal for the authorities.
- “A total of 37 teams have been deployed by NDRF in West Bengal and Odisha, out of which 20 teams are actively deployed and 17 are on standby in the two states. It is a dual challenge as cyclone is striking in time of COVID-19 and (hence) we are facing a double challenge so to say.” SN Pradhan, Director General, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), said regarding the preparations.
- While northern parts of Odisha are likely to be affected the most, heavy rainfall in expected in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka too.
- Until Wednesday, fishermen have been asked to stay off the coast.
- IMD said that the high-velocity winds may cause damage to houses, crops, plantations and orchards, and power infrastructure and could also affect rail traffic.
- West Bengal Home Secretary Alapan Bandopdhyay said that the state is prepared to deal with the situation. Disaster management teams were dispatched to cyclone shelters in the coastal areas and other places for rescue and relief operations where social distancing norms would be strictly followed, he said, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Earlier, on Saturday, the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) had met under Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba to review the preparedness for minimizing the loss of lives and property due to the cyclone.
- Odisha had also braced the impact of Cyclone Fani last year. The state government had relocated 11 lakh people then.
Source: NDTV
