CHENNAI: The six-member inter-ministerial central team led by Kunal Satyarthi, Advisor (Policy and Plan), National Disaster Management Authority on Tuesday praised the Tamil Nadu government for “doing enormous amounts of work in preparing to face Cyclone Michaung and in the response. The casualties have been extremely minimal. We appreciate that the government has responded extremely well.”
Satyarthi said this while visiting the rain-affected parts of Chennai. Answering queries from reporters, he said, “We are aware of what has happened in Chennai. Whatever happened in Chennai is not very good - both the effect of the cyclone, stormwater surge, and the stagnation of water - is a matter of concern.”
The central team, ahead of commencing the first day of its visit to rain-hit areas, held detailed discussions with Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena and a host of key officials from various departments at the secretariat. A PowerPoint presentation was made to the team from the genesis of the cyclone and its impact to date.
“I appreciate that the Tamil Nadu government has done an enormous amount of work in preparation to face the cyclone and its response (to the impact of the cyclone). The casualties have been extremely minimal. But infrastructure is much more resilient compared to the floods of 2015. We are aware that the airports opened faster and the power supply and mobile phone connectivity were restored quickly. We appreciate that the government has responded extremely well. We from the central government are here to appreciate that and help the state government recover as quickly as possible,” Satyarthi added.
Responding to a question, Satyarthi said the residents of Chennai are worried about the water level rising. Chennai is a low-lying town. On that night (December 4), the rainfall was extremely high. The storm was extremely high. All the designs of the canals and outlets of the town were impaired and the sea did not allow water to flow in. “We are in conversation with the IITs and all the institutions to address the issue of flooding. There is already an urban flood mitigation plan made for Chennai. We are working with other governments in the world to look at a permanent solution to this problem,” he added.
Asked about the briefing by Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena and the senior officials about the impact of the cyclone at the secretariat, Satyarthi said, “ We must understand that the water must get out of Chennai as quickly as possible. This time it was very aberrant. Had the storm surge and the cyclone's body not moved parallel to the coast of Tamil Nadu, things would not have been as worse. Certainly, the Tamil Nadu government was much better prepared. I interacted with state officials and I am very satisfied and I should appreciate the state government for taking all those measures.”
Satyarthi also pointed out that unfortunately, there was a parallel movement of the cyclone before it headed to the Andhra Pradesh coast causing the storm surge. “Had it not been there, the interventions by the Tamil Nadu government for the past seven to eight years would have had a lot of impact,” he added.
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Questioned when the team would submit its report, Satyarthi said, "We normally do it quickly. We have asked the state government to give all the documents about damages and losses and also about the mitigation programmes the state is running right now and is thinking about. After gathering all these, the team which has representatives from six different ministries of the Government of India would submit the report as early as possible.”
The central team split into North and South Teams will also visit the rest of the areas in Chennai and the neighbouring districts on Wednesday and before leaving for New Delhi on Thursday, will have a wrap-up meeting with Chief Minister MK Stalin. During this meeting, the state government is expected to submit a detailed memorandum about the damages to the infrastructure, the livelihood of people, MSME industries, etc.