New Delhi, Apr 29 (UNI) The Cabinet Secretary on Monday took stock of preparatory measures in the meeting of National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) here on the situation arising out of the cyclonic storm Fani.
During the meeting, officers of all the concerned State Governments confirmed their full preparedness to deal with any emerging situation arising out of the cyclonic storm. Further, the State Governments have adequately warned fishermen not to venture into the sea and highlighted that there is a seasonal ban on fishing in sea upto June 14 due to breeding season. State Governments were advised to effectively enforce this ban.
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) assured the State Governments to release in advance the first installment of State Disaster Relief Fund (SDRF) as per their request.
According to India Meteorological Department (IMD)’s forecast, the Cyclonic Storm ‘Fani’ is at present located at 880 Kms South East of Chennai. It is expected to intensify into a very severe cyclonic storm by April 30. The storm will continue to move northwest till May 1, and thereafter recurves north eastwards gradually. The Government is keeping a close watch on the impact on States on the Eastern Coast.
“National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and Coast Guard have been put on high alert and are coordinating with State Government authorities. They have prepositioned themselves adequately. Regular warnings have been issued since April 25 to fishermen not to venture into the sea and asking those at sea to return to coast, the Home Ministry officials informed the NCMC.
IMD has been issuing three hourly bulletins with latest forecast to all the concerned States. MHA is also in continuous touch with the State Governments and the Central Agencies concerned.
The NCMC meeting followed directions from the Prime Minister who is closely monitoring the situation, a Home Ministry release said. NCMC will meet again on Tuesday to take stock of the situation.
Chief Secretaries and Principal Secretaries of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal attended through Video Conference. Senior officers from the Central Ministries and other agencies concerned also attended the meeting.
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