Odisha gears up for cyclone

Odisha gears up for cyclone

Districts on alert though it may head for the Bengal coast

17/05/2020, SATYASUNDAR BARIK,BHUBANESWAR

The Odisha government on Saturday said it would not to be complacent in its preparation even if initial analysis of the impending cyclone’s track suggests that the system might spare the State.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik held videoconferencing with senior officials of 12 districts to take stock of the situation. He asked the District Collectors to put extra efforts for preparedness and try to ensure zero casualty.

Earlier in the day, Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy briefed Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba about the State’s preparedness.

As per the predicted path of the cyclone, around seven lakh people in 649 villages along the sea coast are likely to be severely affected. Standing crops in lakhs of hectares particularly, ripe summer paddy, pulses and oil seeds, cashew, mango, coconut and vegetables are likely to be damaged, said the government.

“Around 403 cyclone shelters have been identified in the area. Around 105 such shelters are presently being used as quarantine centres for COVID care. Tests of the persons accommodated in these centres are being done expeditiously so that those with negative report can be sent for home quarantine,” said Mr. Tripathy. As a contingency arrangement, alternative buildings were identified, he said.

It is suspected that Balasore, Bhadrak, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur could be hit by the cyclone.