Cyclone Jawad: Odisha puts 14 districts on alert; 266 rescue teams on standby

As Odisha braces for Cyclone Jawad which is likely to hit the state by Saturday, December 4, the government has issued guidelines to prevent adverse effects of the cyclonic storm. The depression over the southeast Bay of Bengal has already intensified into a 'deep depression' and is expected to further intensify into a Cyclonic Storm in the next 12 hours. The storm will most likely reach north Andhra Pradesh-Odisha coast by Saturday morning.

At least 14 coastal districts have been put on alert and officials have been asked to take all necessary steps in view of the imminent cyclone. The Odisha government has also restricted fishing activities within the territorial waters along the entire coastline of Odisha State and Chilika lake from December 3 to 5 to safeguard life and assets.

Exercising caution ahead of the storm, the state government plans to deploy 266 teams including NDRF, State Fire Services, and ODRAF in coastal districts in view of the cyclonic situation, informed Pradeep Kumar Jena, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC).

"We have planned to deploy 24 teams of NDRF, 158 teams of State Fire Services, and 33 teams of ODRAF in 10 coastal districts including Ganjam, Gajapati, Puri, Khordha, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Bhadrak and Balasore, and we have reserved 10 teams of NDRF, 14 teams of Fire Services and 27 teams of ODRAF," the press release said.

The concerned district administrations have been asked to evacuate people from low-lying areas and shift them to Cyclone shelters. 

PM Modi reviews Cyclone situation

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Thursday afternoon to review the preparedness of states, central ministries and agencies to deal with the situation arising out of the likely formation of Cyclone Jawad.

As per PMO, the Prime Minister directed officials to take every possible measure to ensure that people are safely evacuated and ensure maintenance of all essential services such as Power, Telecommunications, health, drinking water, etc. 

PM Modi also directed them to ensure adequate storage of essential medicines and supplies and to plan for unhindered movement. He also directed for 24x7 functioning of control rooms.

Cyclone Jawad to hit Odisha, parts of Andhra Pradesh

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) informed that the low-pressure region in the Bay of Bengal is expected to intensify into Cyclone Jawad and to reach the coast of north Andhra Pradesh, followed by Odisha on Saturday morning, with a wind speed of 100 kmph.

Under the impact of the cyclonic storm, coastal districts are likely to experience light to moderate rainfall from December 3 while south districts may experience heavy rainfall.

While a red alert has been issued for the Gajapati, Ganjam, Puri, and Jagatsinghpur districts, an orange alert has been issued for Kendrapada, Cuttack, Khurda, Nayagarh, Kandhamal, Rayagada, and Koraput. \

Image: PTI