Thursday 24 / October / 2024
New Delhi: The death toll from Cyclone Fani rose to 34 in the Indian state of Odisha.
State emergency officials in Odisha’s capital said that 34 deaths had been reported so far, 21of which were in the town of Puri.
Bishnupada Sethi, Odisha's special relief commissioner, told international media that the death toll is “subject to confirmation through police and postmortem reports that death occurred due to the cyclone.”
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the state on Monday.
In a statement, Modi said, "Took stock of the situation in Odisha. Reviewed relief and rehabilitation operations that are underway. Announced assistance worth Rs. 1000 crore to the Odisha Government.
"I compliment all agencies of the Centre and State Government working among people to restore normalcy."
Modi added, "All possible steps would be taken to repair the damage in infrastructure, power lines, farms among other areas. Have asked officials to ensure roads and railway lines are repaired at the earliest and our farmers get their crop insurance in the wake of the damage.
"I salute the courage and compassion of the people of Odisha, especially fishermen and those living in coastal areas. They paid heed to timely warnings and left no stone unturned in helping fellow citizens in these tough times. The entire nation is praying for their well-being."
Emergency officials said that 11 districts and 14,835 villages in the state were affected by Fani. Additionally, over 1,000 health facilities and nearly 5,800 schools suffered damage due to the cyclone, with Puri seeing extensive damage.
Fani made landfall on Friday morning, leaving behind a trail of destruction and devastation.
Naveen Patnaik, Odisha’s chief minister, called Fani one of the rarest summer cyclones to hit Odisha in 43 years.
“It is also one of three to hit in the last 150 years. Odisha undertook the challenge to lead one of the biggest human evacuations in history, shifting 1.2 million people to safety in 24 hours. Odisha has been devastated by Cyclone Fani."
He added that as a result of the storm's rarity, tracking and predicting it was difficult. "However, we decided to prepare ourselves to face all possible eventualities."
According to Patnaik, electricity infrastructure in the district of Puri and parts of Khurda were completely devastated.
The mammoth evacuation exercise involved more than 45,000 volunteers and three million targeted messages.
Fani made landfall in Puri with wind speeds exceeding 200 kilometres per hour and gusting speeds of 240 kilometres per hour. According to the Patnaik, the storm tore apart critic ital infrastructure including power, telecommunications, and water supply. Uprooted trees led to the blocking of roads, the destruction of homes, and damage to public infrastructure.
A relief package in the state was also announced for those affected by the cyclone.
"Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said all families in Puri and in those parts of Khurda, which had been severely affected in the storm, will get 50 kg of rice, 28 US dollars in cash and polythene sheets, if covered under the Food Security Act (FSA)," a local government official said.
Assistance would also be provided for houses damaged by the cyclone in addition to agricultural, fisheries, and livestock losses, the chief minister added.
