Photo: Professor Ujjwal K Chowdhury
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NCMC reviews Rescue and Relief operations in cyclone hit areas of Odisha and West Bengal
– globalbihari bureau
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting West Bengal and Odisha on Friday to take stock of the situation in the wake of Cyclone Amphan. He will conduct aerial surveys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed.
There have been major damages to agriculture, power and telecommunication facilities in Cyclone affected areas particularly in West Bengal. In Odisha though, damages have been mainly limited to agriculture.
Government stated that timely and accurate forecast by India Meteorological Department (IMD) and advance deployment of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) facilitated in evacuation of about 5 lakh people in West Bengal and about 2 lakh in Odisha.
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“This has resulted in minimal loss of human lives,considering the fact that the intensity of the Amphan was next only to that of the Super Cyclone that struck Odisha in 1999 causing large scale devastation,” a Ministry of Home Affairs spokesperson claimed.
Following a review meeting of the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) chaired by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Thursday, the NDRF is moving additional teams in West Bengal to speed up restoration work, especially in Kolkata. Food Corporation of India too has been asked to ensure adequate availability of food grains, especially rice, to West Bengal so that marooned people could be provided immediate sustenance.
Power Ministry and Department of Telecommunications will also assist in early restoration of services in both the States. The Railways, which suffered major damages to its infrastructure, is in the process of restarting its operations at the earliest.
Reviewing the rescue and restoration efforts, Cabinet Secretary directed that officers of Central Ministries/ Agencies should remain in close touch with Odisha and West Bengal State Governments and provide all required assistance expeditiously. Ministry of Home Affairs will be sending teams to carry out early assessment of damages and submit a report particularly when nationwide lockdown is also in place to contain COVID-19 pandemic.
“Strict Implementation of all measures in Government guidelines is essential to contain the spread of COVID-19. Local authorities must take all necessary steps to enforce the guidelines…Action must be taken if any deviations are noticed,” Gauba said.
It may be mentioned that during lockdown 4.0, States and UTs are now empowered to delineate various zones and decide on the activities prohibited, or allowed with restrictions, in accordance with the MHA guidelines.[the_ad_placement id=”sidebar-feed”]
