New Delhi: Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Thursday reviewed situation in the cyclone-affected areas of Odisha and West Bengal with the States and Central Ministries/Agencies concerned in the aftermath of cyclone Amphan, the Government of India said.
Chief Secretaries of Odisha and West Bengal informed that timely and accurate forecast by India Meteorological Department and advance deployment of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) facilitated in the evacuation of about five lakh people in West Bengal and about two lakh in Odisha, the government informed.
This has resulted in minimal loss of human lives, considering the fact that the intensity of the Amphan was next only to that of the super cyclone that struck Odisha in 1999 causing large scale devastation, it added.
NDRF is moving additional teams in West Bengal to speed up restoration work especially in Kolkata. Food Corporation of India will ensure adequate availability of food grains, especially rice, to West Bengal so that marooned people are provided immediate sustenance, it said.