This Is How Gujarat Is Preparing For Very Severe Cyclone Biparjoy, Set To Make Landfall In Kutch On Thursday
Gujarat, the government has so far evacuated nearly 37,800 people living near the sea in eight coastal districts of the state. The state government aims to evacuate people residing within 10 km of the shore.
A massive evacuation exercise is underway in coastal Gujarat as the state braces for the landfall of Very Severe Cyclone Biparjoy, which is expected to cross land between Kutch and Karachi in Pakistan on Thursday.
The Gujarat government has evacuated nearly 37,800 people living near the sea in eight coastal districts of the state.
REUTERS
More evacuations underway
The state government aims to evacuate people residing within 10 km of the shore.
Over 400 shelter homes were identified in Dwarka alone, and people are being shifted out to the shelter homes.
"More than 400 shelter homes have been identified in the Dwarka district, and people are being shifted to shelter homes. PM took stock of the arrangements from concerned officials and ministers and directed them to be on alert mode and take all necessary steps," Union Minister Parshottam Rupala said.
REUTERS
Cyclone Biparjoy landfall
In Amrelim, the police delivered essential items, including vegetables and milk, to the villagers of Shiyalbet in Jafrabad.
The powerful cyclone will make landfall near Jakhau port on the evening of June 15, according to India Meteorological Department (IMD).
¡°VSCS (very severe cyclonic storm) BIPARJOY over Arabian sea moved north-northwestward and lay centered at 2.30 IST of 14th June, about 280 km WSW of Jakhau port. To cross near Jakhau Port (Gujarat) by the evening of 15th June as VSCS,¡± IMD said in the latest post.
REUTERS
Heavy rains, winds predicted
The cyclone has ¡°extensive damaging potential¡± and is likely to impact Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka and Jamnagar districts the most, IMD has said.
The cyclone is likely to hit the shore near Jakhau port between Mandvi in Kutch and Karachi in Pakistan with sustained wind speeds of 125-135 mph, gusting to 150 kmph on Thursday evening (June 15).
The met department has predicted extremely heavy rainfall accompanied by strong winds in coastal parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region, especially in the districts of Kutch, Porbandar and Devbhumi Dwarka.
AP
Trains cancelled
Due to the cyclone, the Western Railways has decided to cancel at least 67 trains passing through the cyclone-prone areas as a precautionary measure.
Some of the cancelled trains include the Okha-Rajkot Unreserved Special, Veraval-Okha Express, Rajkot-Okha Unreserved Special, Bhavnagar Terminus-Okha Express, Ahmedabad-Veraval Express, Porbandar-Veraval Express, among others.
Passengers affected by the cancellations will be eligible for refunds according to existing rules.
NDRF on standby
After it makes landfall and weakens, Cyclone Biparjoy is likely to remain north-eastward and is expected to move towards extreme south Rajasthan. It is expected to bring heavy to very heavy rain in north Gujarat between June 15-17.
AP
Fishing activities have been suspended till June 16, ports are shut, and ships are anchored as the sea turned turbulent and weather became inclement with extremely heavy rainfall and strong winds in the region due to the approaching cyclone.
The government said 17 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and 12 of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) are on standby in the districts of Devbhumi Dwarka, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar, Gir Somnath, Morbi and Valsad.
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Bobins Abraham is the Assistant News Editor at Indiatimes. He has more than twelve years of experience in TV and digital journalism. An avid student of history and geopolitics, he is a conservationist and environmentalist at heart. He writes on environment, sustainability, human-animal conflict and more.
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