Cyclone 'Amphan' rolls towards Indian shores, unleashes downpour, flattens dwellings
Kolkata/Bhubaneswar: Extremely severe cyclone 'Amphan' hurtled towards Indian shores on Wednesday, triggering downpour in coastal Odisha and Gangetic West Bengal, uprooting trees, flattening fragile dwellings and forcing evacuation of over four lakh people, officials said.
Despite losing its force a bit since Tuesday, the storm, which was categorised as super cyclone at one point of time, has left the two eastern states on edge as it hollered on its destructive path over the Bay of Bengal.
More than 1.25 lakh people have so far been evacuated from low-lying coastal areas of Odisha and the exercise is still under way in some places like Balasore, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) P K Jena said in Bhubaneswar. More than three lakh people were removed to safer places in West Bengal.
Intense rainfall was recorded in several areas of Puri, Khurda, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Ganjam, Ganjam, Bhadrak and Balasore districts since Tuesday.
Though the storm lay about 120 km east-southeast of Paradip in Odisha, 125 km south-southeast of Digha (West Bengal) and nearly 220 km south of Kolkata, its effects are already in evidence in the two states.
'Amphan' is likely to make a landfall somewhere between Digha and Hatiya islands in Bangladesh close to the Sunderbans, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, between afternoon and evening of Wednesday, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
The intensity near the centre of the storm was 170 kmph to 180 kmph gusting to 200 kmph, the weatherman said, adding gale-force winds of 110-120 kmph will slam Kolkata when the cyclone passes over it later in the day, before weakening further into a cyclonic storm over Nadia and Murshidabad in West Bengal.
It will turn into a deep depression while advancing to Bangladesh and dissipate further.
The NDRF, the federal disaster response force, has deployed a total of 41 teams, including reserves, in the two states for relief and rescue operations. Each team consists of 45 personnel. The disaster response force of the two states, besides fire and police personnel have also been deployed.
A team of Indian Navy divers has been stationed at Diamond Harbour in South 24 Parganas district with specialised equipment and can be rushed for rescue missions as and when required, a defence spokesman said.
Streets in Kolkata were mostly deserted and the local authority has advised that markets, which had opened following relaxations in the lockdown regulations on Monday, should remain shut.
The West Bengal capital has been alternately experiencing drizzle and downpour since early Wednesday morning. The cyclone, officials fear, will cause large-scale damage to crops and plantations, and disrupt electricity and communication lines.
The Eastern Railway (ER) has cancelled the departure of Howrah-New Delhi AC Special Express train scheduled for Wednesday. The New Delhi-Howrah AC Special Express on Thursday has also been cacelled, railway officials said.
A Bhubaneswar report said the cyclonic system is being continuously monitored with the help of Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) at Vishakhapatnam, Paradip and Gopalpur.
Special Relief Commissioner of Odisha P K Jena said reports of trees getting uprooted and huts being damaged and blown away have been received from several districts.
The impact of the cyclonic storm will be experienced in the state till late afternoon in parts of Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak, Balasore and Mayurbhanj districts.
'Amphan' has visited the state a year after cyclone Fani barrelled through vast parts of Odisha on May 3, claiming at least 64 lives and destroying vital infrastructure.
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NIA registers case to probe recovery of 79 crude bombs in poll-bound West Bengal
New Delhi (PTI): The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday registered a case to probe recovery of 79 crude bombs in poll-bound West Bengal, officials said.
The move came following a directive by the Union Home Ministry in this regard, they said.
In pursuance to the home ministry's order, the anti-terror agency on Sunday registered a case, which was originally filed at Uttar Kashi police station, Bhangar division, Kolkata on Saturday, and took up the investigation, an NIA spokesperson said in a late night statement.
"The case pertains to recovery of 79 crude bombs and other incriminating materials by Kolkata police, which were being stored at a spot, thereby endangering human life and property," the spokesperson said.
Earlier in the day, the Election Commission had directed the West Bengal Police to launch a special drive to arrest those involved in illegal manufacturing of crude bombs in the poll-bound state, an official said.
It asserted that all cases related to the making of any such explosive would be probed by the National Investigation Agency, the official said.
The directive came after the police recovered a large number of crude bombs from the house of a person, allegedly a TMC worker, at Bhangar in South 24 Parganas district, days ahead of the second and final phase of the assembly polls in the state.
The explosives were recovered during a search at the residence of Rafikul Islam following specific inputs, the official said.
The poll panel also issued a warning to senior police officers across the state over any lapse in maintaining law and order before the April 29 polling.
The first phase of the assembly elections in West Bengal was held on April 23, while the second phase will take place on April 29. Votes will be counted on May 4.
A record 93.19 per cent turnout has been recorded in the first round of polling. Bhangar will vote in the second phase.
