NEW DELHI: Cyclonic storm ‘Montha’ is most likely to make landfall Tuesday night on the Andhra Pradesh coast between Machilipatnam and Kalingapatnam.
The cyclone over the west-central Bay of Bengal has escalated into a severe cyclonic storm, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
As a precautionary measure, authorities have sent NDRF and SDRF teams, prepared hundreds of relief centres, and terminated several trains. Thousands of people from low-lying and vulnerable areas have already been safely shifted to ensure safety and minimise casualties.
This is how states are preparing to save their residents from the wrath of Cyclone.
Tamil Nadu
A flood alert has been issued along the banks of the Palar River in villages under Kanchipuram, Walajabad, and Uthiramerur taluks after 10,626 cubic feet per second (cusecs) of surplus water was released from the Palar dam a day ago, news agencies reported.
With cyclonic storm ‘Montha’ inching towards Andhra Pradesh, all eyes are on Tamil Nadu’s Tiruvallur district, which is likely to receive torrential rainfall on Tuesday.
According to the Tiruvallur District Disaster Management, between 6 am Monday and 6 am Tuesday, Ponneri and Avadi in Tiruvallur recorded 72 mm and 62 mm of rainfall, respectively. Anticipating heavy downpour, Tiruvallur District Collector M Prathap declared a holiday for schools on Tuesday.
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh has readied 1,906 relief camps and 364 school shelters to accommodate residents being evacuated from 1,238 villages vulnerable to gusty winds and heavy rainfall triggered by the cyclone. The Vijayawada division of the South Central Railway (SCR) has cancelled 54 trains on October 28 and 29 in view of Cyclone Montha.
Odisha
Thirty-two trains passing through Visakhapatnam have been terminated in Odisha after Cyclone Montha intensified into a “severe cyclonic storm” on Tuesday morning.
“We have terminated 32 trains passing through Visakhapatnam to minimize disruption. We aim to operate trains until 4 p.m. tomorrow; however, local MEMUs and other trains scheduled to depart later have been cancelled. The list of affected trains has been uploaded on social media and our digital platforms,” said Deepak Rout, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of East Coast Railway, Bhubaneswar.
He added that the Tatanagar–Ernakulam Express has been diverted, while two trains, the Bhubaneswar–Jagdalpur Express and the Rourkela–Jagdalpur Intercity Express, have been short-terminated.
As a precautionary measure, the Odisha government has evacuated people from low-lying and landslide-prone areas across eight districts, Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi, and Kandhamal.
A total of 140 rescue teams comprising over 5,000 personnel from the NDRF, ODRAF, and Fire Services have been deployed.
Chhattisgarh
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has deployed 25 teams across the coastal districts of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Puducherry. An additional 20 teams have been placed on standby at strategic locations for quick deployment. Each team is equipped with boats, cutting tools, communication gear, and other specialized equipment to conduct evacuation, relief, and restoration operations, the NDRF said.
Telangana
In view of the impending Cyclone Montha and to ensure passenger safety, the South Central Railway and Southern Railway have rescheduled several long-distance trains scheduled to depart on October 28.
Agencies