Even as parts of eastern India recovers from Cyclone Amphan, another storm is getting ready to descent on the western coast of the country. A severe cyclone named Nisarga is brewing in the Arabian sea off the coast of Maharashtra and Gujarat.
The IMD has already sounded a warning, adding that rainfall was expected in several places along the western coast of the country. The depression in the Arabian Sea is likely to intensify into a severe cyclone and cross the north Maharashtra and south Gujarat coasts on June 3.
On Monday evening Home Minister Amit Shah held meetings via video conference with the Chief Ministers of Gujarat and Maharashtra to review the preparations for the Cyclone.
"He has assured all possible assistance from the central government," added a tweet from the Home Minister's account.
Shah also undertook a meeting with senior officials of NDMA, NDRF, IMD and the Indian Coast Guard on preparedness for dealing with the cyclone.
Speaking about the brewing storm, SN Pradhan, the Director General of the National Disaster Response Force said that 21 teams of NDRF are deployed in both the states and 10 teams are on standby. The IMD had warned that the cyclonic storm will bring in its wake heavy rains, adding that it was expected to hit the southern Gujarat coast near Daman on June 3 evening with a wind speed of 90 to 100 km per hour.
"Nisarga is a severe cyclone and we're expecting a wind speed of 90-100 kmph, which I think is negotiable. Still, as a precautionary measure, we are going to start the evacuation of people from the coastal areas of the two states soon," revealed Pradhan.
The Gujarat government has ordered evacuation of low-lying areas and deployed 10 National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams in over half a dozen districts.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday appealed to fishermen not to venture into the sea in view of the cyclonic storm. The state government has stepped up safety measures along the Konkan coast to tackle any eventuality.
Meanwhile, in adjoining Goa, people have been advised not to visit beaches or venture into the sea over the next 48 hours as the IMD has predicted heavy rainfall in parts of north and south Goa districts with wind speeds of 45-55 kilometres per hour, officials said on Monday.
(With inputs from agencies)
