CHENNAI: Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Thursday reviewed preparedness measures to tackle the northeast monsoon in 16 districts placed under a very heavy rainfall warning by the meteorological department. The CM directed the respective district collectors to take all precautions to prevent loss of life due to heavy rain and flooding.
Visiting the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) at Ezhilagam, Vijay interacted with the collectors through video conferencing and assessed the precautionary measures in place. He also instructed the departments concerned to strengthen interdepartmental coordination to address the impact of the northeast monsoon and ensure timely and effective responses to emergency situations.
An official release stated that the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued very heavy rainfall warnings for the Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Dindigul, Theni, Madurai, Virudhunagar, Tenkasi, Kanniyakumari, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Sivaganga, Pudukkottai, Tiruvarur, Thanjavur, Nagapattinam, and Mayiladuthurai districts for Thursday.
The CM inspected the Integrated Multi-Hazard Monitoring Dashboard at the SEOC. The system enables real-time monitoring of recorded rainfall, IMD forecasts, water levels in major reservoirs, weather radar imagery, satellite images showing cloud cover and cloud-top temperatures, and wind movement.
The dashboard also includes a call centre monitoring system to track complaints. The chief minister has been periodically reviewing monsoon preparedness, including forecasts relating to El Niño, added the press note. Minister K A Sengottaiyan, Chief Secretary M Sai Kumar, and senior government officials were present during the inspection.