Ahmedabad: The extremely severe cyclonic storm Tauktae lies close to the Gujarat coast, said the India Meteorological Department, adding the landfall process has started and will continue during the next 2 hours.
The ESCS Tauktae lies close to the Gujarat coast. The IMD said it will take another 2 hours to complete the landfall process.
“At 2230 IST - centre of the cyclone now lies overland about 20kms East-northeast of Diu. The landfall process will continue for the next 2hrs,” the weather department added.
Previously, The IMD informed that the centre of the cyclone will cross the Saurashtra coast to the East of Diu within the next three hours.
“The forward sector of the eye is entering into the land. The centre of the cyclone will cross Saurashtra coast to the east of Diu within the next 3 hours. Outer cloud band lies over Saurashtra,” it informed.
The IMD further said light intensity rain would occur over isolated places of Firozabad, Tundla, Jalesar, Hathras, Sadabad, Agra, Jajau in Uttar Pradesh and Bayana, Mehndipur, Mahwa, Nadbai, Bharatpur in Rajasthan during the next two hours.
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Preparations In Gujarat
Earlier, Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani reached the State Control Room in Gandhinagar to review the situation of the state including the coastal districts, by video conference with the collectors.
The Indian Army is in constant touch with the civil administration in view of the cyclone. Two Army columns have been mobilised from Jamnagar for Diu along with Engineer Task Force. Two more columns staged forward to Junagadh for immediate response in case need arises.
11 Indian Navy Diving Teams have been kept on standby in case of any request from authorities of affected states. Twelve flood rescue teams and medical teams have been earmarked for immediate response and deployment. Repair and rescue teams have also been formed to undertake urgent infrastructural repairs post cyclone if required.
Three ships (Talwar, Tarkash and Tabar) are on standby with aid and relief material for immediate assistance to the affected areas.
Balance ships on the western seaboard are also on standby for assistance to fishing boats/small boats stranded due to rough weather. The Indian Navy’s Maritime Reconnaissance aircraft on surveillance are continuously broadcasting cyclone warnings to fishermen.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has deployed its aircraft to transport personnel and tonnes of load of NDRF to Ahmedabad.
The IAF had earlier on Sunday deployed two C-130J and one An-32 aircraft for transportation of 167 personnel and 16.5 tonnes of load of NDRF from Kolkata to Ahmedabad. Another C-130J and two An-32 aircraft carried 121 NDRF personnel and 11.6 tonnes of load from Vijayawada to Ahmedabad for the same purpose. Two C-130J aircraft transported 110 personnel and 15 tonnes of cargo for NDRF from Pune to Ahmedabad.