How Odisha is preparing for upcoming ‘cyclone season’ ?

The Odisha government has started preparing for possible cyclones over the next two months. However, no such forecast has been made by the weather office, according to the news agency PTI.

SC Mahopatra, Chief Secretary has directed the concerned officials to take all precautionary measures at the state-level cyclone preparedness meeting on Monday.

In the meeting, the chief secretary said that Odisha faces severe cyclonic storms in October and November, sometimes even till mid-December. According to him, this time period is considered 'cyclone season' in the state.

"Odisha usually witnesses the wrath of cyclones during the withdrawal of monsoon in October and November. Odisha's geographical situation and climate change have also caused cyclones during the summers since 2019," he added as quoted by PTI.

Regional Meteorological Centre director HR Biswas, who attended the meeting, informed that the IMD has not forecast any such cyclone for the next 15 days even as there are favorable conditions for a cyclonic storm.

The chief secretary also asked all the departments to remain prepared to deal with any situation and make all arrangements according to the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP).

Mohapatra asked officials to keep the required equipment ready and also ensure that all tube wells in rural and urban areas are functional. Apart from this, he also directed them to prepare a list of pregnant women, aged persons, and disabled persons so that they can be easily identified and rescued in case of emergency.

He also stressed creating awareness among the people living in the coastal districts and required measures to protect the saline embankments in the cyclone-prone areas. He directed officials to store medicines and keep ambulances and doctors in full preparedness, PTI reported. 

The meeting that took place for the preparation of the upcoming 'cyclone season' was also attended by secretaries of different departments, and officers of Fire Services, ODRAF, and NDRF.

(With PTI inputs)