How Odhisa has set the model by the effective handling of the Cyclone Fani?

Cyclone Fani has left a trail of destruction in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and West Bengal.  The temple town of Puri in Odisha was the most affected by the cyclone. Hundreds of people were left homeless and at least 29 people were reported dead in Odisha.

The relief efforts undertaken by the government of Odisha has received applauds even from the International Media. It is said that the Odisha has set an example by taming the tempest.

How Odisha handled the Crisis?

• The death toll due to the cyclone Fani stood at 34 which were expected to be worse. Two decades earlier, the Super Cyclone, which swept the state with wind speeds similar to Fani had killed over 10,000 people.
• The administration undertook the evacuation of over a million people largely since the Indian Meteorological Department had tracked the storm’s path accurately as it originated as a tropical depression in the Indian Ocean, off Sumatra, on April 26.
• The Odisha administration had embarked on a massive communication outreach to get the vulnerable population on the coast shift to nearly 900 cyclone shelters which were built in the aftermath of the 1999 Super Cyclone.
• Loud speakers to radio and TV commercials to mobile phones, about 2.6 million text messages were sent out. Medias were pressed into spreading the message of the impending storm and fishermen warned not to go out into the sea.
• With the help of thousands of volunteers, emergency workers, police officers the government executed the evacuation plan and by the time the cyclone crossed over to the land, most of the population had been moved to the shelters.
• Further the administration had also readied boats, helicopters and the necessary equipment to clear roads, fallen trees etc.

Cyclones have been both a boon and bane of India’s eastern coasts. After the large scale destruction due to the Super Cyclone two decades earlier, Odisha had promised to put systems and structures in place to deal with cyclones, an unavoidable natural phenomenon on the Bay of Bengal coast. The administration’s resolve and capabilities were put to test by Cyclone Phailin in 2013 and now, it has stood up to the onslaught of Fani.