Cyclone Ditwah expected to weaken into deep depression late on Sunday: Met Office
Chennai (PTI): Cyclone Ditwah is expected to weaken into a deep depression and the weather system would be centred over southwest Bay of Bengal within a minimum distance of 30 km from the coasts of North Tamil Nadu and Puducherry by midnight of Sunday, the Regional Meteorological Centre said.
In an update about the Cyclone Ditwah, the Met office said the Cyclone Ditwah is located about 90 km southeast of Cuddalore, 120 km northeast of Karaikal, 90 km southeast of Puducherry, 170 km northeast of Vedaranniyam and 150 km southeast of Chennai.
"The minimum distance of the centre of the cyclone from north Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coasts is about 80 km. It is very likely to move nearly northwards parallel to North Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coasts and weaken into a deep depression during the next 3 hours." the bulletin issued by the Met office said on Sunday evening said.
The cyclone is moving at a speed of 5 kmph and it is expected to be with in a minimum distance of 30 km from the north Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coastline by midnight of Sunday, 30th November, it said.
Private weather bloggers said Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur, Chennai, Chengalpattu and Ranipet districts may have some rains as the cyclone moves closer to Chennai later at night. "Some clouding is expected to come back at night to tomorrow morning. The cyclone may bring in some more rains before fizzling out in open sea," they said.
Earlier, sharp showers triggered by the Cyclone continued to lash several parts of Tamil Nadu, while three persons have been killed in rain-related deaths, the state government said.
With heavy rainfall pounding Cauvery delta districts in the state, Ramanathapuram and Nagapattinam districts bore the brunt.
Normal life continued to be affected in the coastal towns of Rameswaram and Nagapattinam as heavy rainfall inundated several low-lying areas.
Due to the impact of the cyclone, the weather office predicted heavy to very heavy rain is likely to occur at a few places over Tiruvallur, Ranipet, Kancheepuram, Chennai, Chengalpattu and Vellore districts during the next 24 hours. Heavy rain is likely to occur at isolated places over Tirupathur, Tiruvannamalai, Villupuram districts and Puducherry, it said.
Strong surface winds with speed reaching 60-70 kmph gusting to 80 kmph is likely to prevail over the North Coastal Tamil Nadu and Puducherry and south coastal Karaikal area.
Sea condition is likely to be high and it is very likely to improve gradually becoming very rough to rough by morning of December 1 and gradually improve thereafter, the bulletin said.
Fishermen are advised not to venture into the sea and those out at sea should avoid southwest Bay of Bengal, Gulf of Mannar, Comorin area and along and off Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, south Andhra Pradesh till December 1, it said.
The state government has kept 38 disaster response teams, including SDRF and NDRF on standby with 10 more teams from other states joined in the relief and rehabilitation work on Saturday evening, State Revenue and Disaster Management Minister KKSSR Ramachandran said.
Three people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents caused by Cyclone Ditwah, he said. As many as 149 livestock died and 57,000 hectares of farmland have been affected in the delta districts, he added.
"Three people have lost their lives in rain-related incidents since last evening. While two persons died due to wall collapse in Tuticorin and Thanjavur, respectively, a 20-year-old youth died due to electrocution in Mayiladuthurai," Ramachandran told reporters at the State Emergency Operations Centre on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Southern Railway said it has stepped up strategic planning and comprehensive preparedness in mitigating the effects of Cyclone Ditwah.
Southern Railway, in a press release on Sunday said, it has activated a comprehensive cyclone preparedness mechanism to ensure the safety of passengers, railway staff and critical railway infrastructure in view of the cyclone related alerts issued by IMD and the likelihood of heavy rainfall and high-velocity winds across Tamil Nadu and Puducherry regions.
With experience gained from handling previous extreme weather events and major storms that impacted the Chennai region and coastal districts, Southern Railway said it has strengthened the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and is maintaining round-the-clock vigilance in Chennai, Madurai and Tiruchirappalli divisions that fall directly in the high impact zone of Tamil Nadu.
The name 'Ditwah' suggested by Yemen, refers to a lagoon and likely comes from Detwah Lagoon, a large saline lagoon on Socotra's northwest coast.
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Pak police registers case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on LeT co-founder
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Lahore (PTI): Pakistan's Punjab Police on Friday registered a case against unidentified gunmen for opening fire on Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) co-founder Amir Hamza, who suffered bullet injuries in the attack in Lahore.
On Thursday, two unidentified gunmen riding on a bike opened fire on the vehicle of the private TV channel 24NewsHD TV, owned by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, on Peco Road in Lahore near the TV channel's office.
In the attack, Hamza suffered bullet injuries.
"The FIR has been registered against unidentified gunmen, but it is sealed forthwith," a senior police officer told PTI.
He said the intelligence agencies have taken over this case from the police, and they are currently investigating the matter.
The channel's religious programme host Justice (retd.) Nazir Ahmed Ghazi and Hamza were in the vehicle when it was attacked. Hamza was shifted to a hospital for treatment.
Punjab police on Friday said that "upon receiving information about the incident, the SSP Operations immediately reached the scene and a high alert was imposed in the area. SSP Operations Tauqeer Naeem also met the affected individuals. Thankfully, all present in the vehicle remained safe during the firing."
It further said senior police officers of the Township and Chung, along with a heavy police contingent, were present at the scene.
"Police collected evidence from the site and initiated an investigation. Efforts to arrest the suspects are underway using CCTV footage and geo-fencing techniques. Search and sweep operations are being conducted at various locations, with scrutiny of suspicious individuals ongoing," police said.
It added that those involved in the incident will be traced and arrested soon.
The police sources said that Hamza has been shifted to his residence in Jauhar Town, Lahore, where police and agency personnel met him.
The leadership of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML), a political front of Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's banned Jamat-ud-Dawah (JuD), including Hafiz Saeed's son Hafiz Talha Saeed, also called on him.
TV host retired Justice Ghazi, who remained unhurt in the attack, remained a legal counsel for Hafiz Saeed, they said.
The PMML has strongly condemned the attack on Hamza and demanded that those involved in the incident be arrested immediately.
Hamza is regarded as LeT's second most important leader after its chief Hafiz Saeed, who has been in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail since 2019 after getting convicted for several years in terror financing cases.
Hamza has been designated as a terrorist by the US. In the past, he served as the head of LeT's "special campaigns" department.
In 2018, Hamza formed a fundraising group for the LeT following a ban on the JuD and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation by the Pakistani government.
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