BHUBANESWAR: Odisha heaved a sigh of relief as Cyclone Dana made its way through the north coastal districts without causing any major damage to life and property.
The tropical storm, categorised as a severe cyclone, crossed the coast near Habalikhati in Bhitarkanika National Park shortly after midnight on Thursday with wind speeds gusting up to 120 kmph. The landfall process completed in the morning and the system weakened into a deep depression.
The system lay centred over north coastal Odisha about 50 km northwest of Bhadrak and 70 km east-southeast of Keonjhar. It is likely to move nearly westwards across north Odisha and weaken gradually into a depression, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who had been constantly monitoring the situation, expressed satisfaction over the efforts of the administration in preparing for and handling the impact of the storm.
“The state government has achieved its objective of Zero Casualty as there has been no report on loss of life. With the blessings of Lord Jagannath, precautionary measures, administrative preparedness and teamwork, we have successfully managed the impact of the cyclone. Our administrative officers and rescue teams were on the ground for over 72 hours,” he said.
Even as Dana packed strong winds, there was a visible lack of intense rainfall activity which to a large extent minimised its impact. There were reports of felling of trees, minor disruptions in road communication and power supply in the affected areas but 90 per cent restoration work was completed by evening, Majhi said.
The chief minister will make an aerial survey of the affected areas on Saturday along with Revenue and Disaster Management minister Suresh Pujari. Collectors of affected districts have been asked to submit preliminary damage report within the next seven days.
“According to preliminary estimation, crops in 1.75 lakh acre have been damaged. However, a decision will be taken only after final reports are received from the collectors. Compensation will be paid to the affected people on the basis of the reports,” he said. Majhi said due to coordinated efforts of ministers, officials deployed in the affected districts, elected representatives and local administrations, the state government has successfully tackled the cyclone.
The government claimed all road blocks due to felled trees were cleared by evening. Electricity supply to 22.43 lakh consumers was disrupted due to cyclone, out of which 14.8 lakh connections have been restored. “Power restoration work was affected because of heavy rains in some areas. We hope electricity will be restored to all consumers by Saturday afternoon,” the CM said.
About 7,000 pregnant women were shifted from vulnerable places and taken to hospitals and Maa Gruhas (maternity waiting homes) in the state and at least 2,200 children were born during the period. Train and flight services also resumed on the day.
Majhi said, the government had evacuated more than eight lakh people to cyclone shelters. As danger from cyclone receded, some of them returned home after taking permission. The government has, however, decided to run the shelters for seven more days, he said.
Revenue minister Suresh Pujari said intensity of rain and wind velocity will decrease as the storm was weakening after landfall. Teams of NDRF, ODRAF, Odisha Fire Service, OFDC and Rural Development department worked on war footing to restore normalcy in road communication by removing uprooted trees and other obstructions in affected areas, he said.