The extremely severe Cyclone Tauktae is inching closer to Gujarat and will be hitting the state by night. Prime Minister Modi has been reported to have called the Chief Ministers of Gujarat, Goa & Maharashtra to take a stock of the preparations of the state. Cyclone Tauktae has increased pressure on local administrations already battered by a high caseload of COVID-19 infections and overwhelmed health infrastructure.

Also read: TAUKTAE CYCLONE Updates- turning into “A Severe and Life Threatening Storm”

Details

1,50,000 Gujarat residents evacuated

As many as 1,50,000 people were evacuated from their shelters in Gujarat to other safe places to safeguard them from the Tauktae cyclonic storm that is getting closer and closer to the state. According to the Indian Meteorological Department, the storm will be hitting the coast of the state by Monday Night.

Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani receives call from PM Modi

Vijay Rupani, the Chief Minister of Gujarat received a call from the former Gujarat CM and the current Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the prime minister assured the state government of all possible help to deal with the situation.

The Gujarat CM’s office released a statement which said-

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday evening called up Chief Minister Vijay Rupani over the phone and sought details of preparation by the state government to deal with cyclone Tauktae.”

Major airports, sea ports closed

The Gujarat authorities have closed all the sea ports and major airports before the cyclone makes a landfall. News agency Reuters in its news report said-

“This will be the most severe cyclone to hit Gujarat in at least 20 years. This can be compared with the 1998 cyclone that hit Kandla and inflicted heavy damage.”

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh evaluates military’s preparedness

The storm over the past few days have intensified and has been the cause of death for 12 people so far. Due to such severity, the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also evaluated the military’s preparedness to provide the assistance to those who may get affected due to the cyclone. Further, the defence minister also assessed all the warships and the rescue teams that are put on standby for relief tasks.

Mumbai battered by heavy rains and winds

Earlier today, winds and heavy rains battered cities of Maharashtra. Mumbai witnessed heavy rains and winds. Maharashtra cabinet minister Aaditya Thackeray paid a visit to BMC’s disaster management division to assess the situation and claimed that the authorities in the state are doing all it can to keep the city and its citizens safe.

Mumbai Police Vigilant

Mumbai Police has been given the task to be vigilant and on high alert as relief-related works have already begun to take place in certain regions of the city. An official from the BMC said that life-saving equipment and resources are ready to be used in the wake of the heavy rains and winds.

BMC working with Mumbai Police

The BMC official also informed media that Mumbai police stations and various checkpoints have been alerted to see if their communication instruments and wireless sets are working well. The same directives are also given to rescue divisions to check items such as life jackets, stretchers, ropes, hammers, first-aid kits, etc.

PM Modi calls CM Uddhav Thackeray

Prime Minister Modi also spoke to Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray to take stock of the cyclone Tauktae preparedness in the state. The storm made a landfall in Mumbai afternoon with strong gusts of wind blowing at 114 kmph. Prime Minister Modi also took a high-level meeting that was attended by CMs of the states where the storm was going to show its darkest face, and chiefs of relevant agencies also took part in the meeting.