Kolkata: As cyclone Dana inches closer towards India’s east coast, Odisha and West Bengal are leaving no stone unturned to minimise damage.
While north Odisha is expected to face the maximum brunt of the severe cyclonic storm, people in coastal districts of West Bengal are also fearing the worst.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a red alert for districts like East Midnapore, West Midnapore and South 24 Parganas, and orange alert for Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly and North 24 Parganas.
A state control room has been opened Nabanna, the Secretariat building, to keep track of the situation.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee will be at the Secretariat all night to personally monitor the situation arising from Cyclone Dana’s landfall.
Mamata sought to calm people in the state.
“Don’t be scared, don’t panic. Our administration is making every possible effort to keep everyone safe. I will be at Nabanna all night to monitor the situation,” was Mamata’s message to the people.
Around 1,30,000 people have already been evacuated from low-lying areas in West Bengal’s coastal districts, and more are being shifted to shelters set up at schools and buildings, especially in East Midnapore and South 24 Parganas.
Dana is likely to make landfall between Puri and Sagar Island, close to Bhitarkanika and Dhamara in Odisha, in the early hours of Friday with a wind speed of 100-110 km per hour, gusting up to 120 kmph, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The coastal districts of West Bengal are already experiencing high winds and rain. The showers will get heavier as the evening progresses.
Kolkata, which has remained cloudy and windy from the afternoon with light drizzles, will see winds gusting up to 70-80 kmph.
According to IMD, seven districts of West Bengal may receive over 200 mm of rain. Heavy to very heavy rain is expected in Kolkata.
As a precaution, operations at Kolkata airport will be suspended from 6 pm on Thursday to 9 am on Friday, while South Eastern Railway and Eastern Railway have cancelled trains from 8 pm to 10 am.
Ferry services between Howrah and Kolkata across Hooghly river have also been suspended.
Cyclone Remal was the last severe cyclone to affect Bengal, in May.
Remal crossed Bangladesh and the adjoining West Bengal coast, leaving a trail of destruction in three coastal districts of the eastern Indian state.
Six people were killed and over 200,000 people were displaced.
