Cyclone Yaas: Odisha Govt directs officials to supervise relief, rehabilitation work

The Odisha Government on Monday assigned the high risk districts to Senior Officers to supervise relief, rehabilitation and restoration work in the wake of the severe Cyclonic storm 'Yaas' which is expected to hit the coasts of Odisha and West Bengal on May 26.

Listing the IAS officers, a statement issued by the Additional Secretary, Indramani Tripathy, read, "The following 1AS officers are assigned the districts noted against each for supervision of relief, rehabilitation and restoration works arising out of very severe Cyclonic storm 'Yaas'. The officers concerned are requested to proceed to the respective districts immediately.

More than 800 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) personnel are in a high state of readiness for the cyclone Yaas, police said.

"More than 800 #ODRAF personnel with Tower lights, Search lights, Gensets, JCBs, Hydra Cranes, inflatable boats, high end hydraulic tree cutters, gas cutters, plasma cutters, Sat phones and walkie talkie sets are in high state of readiness to tackle Cyclone #YAAS," Odisha police said in a tweet.

Odisha police also informed in a tweet that 12 formations of ODRAF, apart from NDRF and Fire Services teams were deployed for the pre and post-cyclone operations. 12 platoons force has also been deployed for the same.

"12 formations of ODRAF, apart from NDRF and Fire Services teams, as well as 12 platoons force have been deployed for pre/post cyclone operations", the tweet read.

According to the statement, Hemant Sharma, Principal Secretary, Industries Department with additional charge of Principal Secretary to Government, Skill Development and Technical Education Department and Chairman, Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Odisha (IPICOL) has been assigned Kendrapad dstrict.

Jagatsinghpur district has been given under the responsibility of Saswata Mishra, Principal Secretary to Government, Higher Education Department.

Vir Vikram Yadav, Principal Secretary, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Department, withadditional charge of Co-operation Department, has been given charge of Bhadrak district.

While Vishal Kumar Dev, Principal Secretary, Sports and Youth Services Department, with additional charge Principal of the Tourism Department has been given charge of Balasore, Suresh Kumar Vashishth, Special Secretary , Agriculture and Farmers' Empowerment Department, will monitor the situation in Mayurbhnaj district.

Meanwhile, five senior police officers have also been assigned districts for guidnce and support to district police in the wake of severe Cyclonic storm 'Yaas'.

According to a statement issued by the Odisha Director General of Police (DGP) Abhay, IPS officer JN Pankaj was sent to Kendrapara, IPS Amitabh Thakur to Jagatsinghpur, IPS AN Sinha to Bhadrak, IPS Diptesh Kumar Pattnayak to Balasore and IPS Anirudh Kumar Singh was sent to Mayurbhanj.

In a tweet today, the IMD informed, "Deep Depression over East-central Bay of Bengal intensified into Cyclonic Storm 'Yaas' and about 600 km of Port Blair. To intensify into a Severe Cyclonic Storm during next 24 hours and into a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm during subsequent 24 hours."

( With inputs from ANI )

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