110 Cyclones Hit Odisha During 1891-2018, Says Document At SOA Workshop In Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: The Bay of Bengal coast of the Indian sub-continent is most vulnerable to tropical storms with the coastal areas of Odisha bearing the brunt of majority of such cyclonic storms, said a document released at a workshop organised at the Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University in Bhubaneswar on Monday.

It further said Odisha coast was hit by around 110 cyclones between 1891 and 2018. Repeated cyclonic storms necessitated focused attention on forecasting, prediction, preparedness, mitigation of impacts and management of such cyclones in the state in the face of climate change, the document said.

The socio-economic impact of tropical cyclones and coping strategies of local communities in Odisha, with special focus on women, was the subject of the national workshop. “The workshop aimed at promotion and dissemination of understanding, awareness, mitigation and coping strategies related to tropical cyclones,” said Satya Ranjan Das, organising secretary of the workshop.

“It is primarily intended to disseminate the outcome of a research programme on the subject carried out by KP University, Vancouver, Canada and BITS-Pilani (Hyderabad Campus) under the auspices of Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute,” he said adding SOA, through its faculty of agricultural sciences and Centre for Climate Smart Agriculture (CCSA), was also conducting research on coping strategies of local communities in Odisha.

Prof Dolagobinda Pradhan of KP University and HR Biswas, Head of the Bhubaneswar Meteorological Centre, Prof Bijay Kumar Sahu, vice-chancellor of SOA and Prof Pradipta Kumar Nanda, pro-chancellor of SOA, spoke at the
inaugural session. Archana Srivastava of BITS-Pilani proposed the vote of thanks.