WB, Odisha, B’desh facing Cyclonic storm

AS Cyclone Yaas is likely to intensify into a “very severe cyclonic storm” and cross the Odisha and the West Bengal coasts on Wednesday, Prime Minister  Narendra Modi assured the two states to provide whatever cooperation is needed. India Meteorological Department said a low-pressure area has formed over the east-central Bay of Bengal and the adjoining north Andaman Sea yesterday. It is likely to cross West Bengal and adjoining north Odisha and Bangladesh coasts around the evening of 26th May. Director IMD (Bhubaneswar) HR Biswas, said that North Coastal Odisha is likely to witness light to moderate rainfall from Tuesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has directed all concerned departments to ensure timely evacuation of those involved in off-shore activities in view of Cyclone Yaas which is expected to cross West Bengal and north Odisha coasts on Wednesday evening. He also instructed officers to work in close coordination with states to ensure the safe evacuation of people from high-risk areas.PM Modi reviewed preparedness at a high-level meeting on May 23  attended by ministers and agencies of the states and GOI. During the meeting, India Meteorological Department, that Cyclone Yaas is likely to intensify into a “very severe cyclonic storm” and is expected to cross the Odisha and the West Bengal coasts on Wednesday evening with the wind speed ranging 155 to 165 kilometers per hour gusting to 185 kilometers per hour. It is likely to cause heavy rainfall in the coastal districts of West Bengal and north Odisha.IMD has also warned of storm surge of about 2 to 4 metres in coastal areas of West Bengal and Odisha. He spoke about the need to ensure that the time duration of outages of power supply and communication network are minimum and are restored swiftly. The Prime Minister also asked officials to ensure proper coordination and planning with state governments to ensure no disruptions in Covid treatment and vaccination in hospitals. PM  Modi directed officials that advisories and instructions on do’s and don’ts during the cyclone be made available in an easily understandable local language to citizens of the affected districts. The State Minister for Disaster Management and Relief Enamur Rahman told the media that the government is preparing cyclone shelters with three times more capacity in view of the COVID 19 situation in the country to accommodate people during the cyclone. The Minister said that the possibility of the cyclone hitting the coast of Bangladesh will be clear by Sunday but concerned persons have been asked to make preparations on time. Edited by PKC