Cyclone Biparjoy less than 200 km from Gujarat coast; maximum wind speed to touch 150 kmph

Cyclone Biparjoy is less than 200 km from the Gujarat coast and its impending landfall on Thursday (June 15) evening, along with the anticipated heavy rain and storm surge, have led to the evacuation of 74,000 people living in vulnerable areas, authorities have said.

While NDRF teams have been deployed in vulnerable areas, the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy have kept their vessels and aircraft on the standby for relief and rescue operations.

“About 180km west-southwest of Jakhau Port, Kutch. To cross Saurashtra & Kutch and adjoining Pakistan coasts between Mandvi and Karachi near Jakhau Port by today evening as a VSCS,” the India Meteorological Department said in its latest bulletin issued at 5.30 am.

The Indian Navy has kept helicopters ready on INS Hansa in Goa and INS Shikra in Mumbai for embarkation to Gujarat. Dornier aircraft are on standby for aerial reconnaissance and transportation of relief material and personnel, said the Navy.

The NDRF and coast guard are gearing up for the day, since the cyclone is expected to make a landfall in the state between 4 and 8 pm on Thursday (June 15).

The Gujarat government said that 399 pregnant women had been tracked down and door-to-door check up was done. Out of the 181 pregnant women who had been admitted to hospitals, 169 have delivered their babies, said the government in an update.

With the cyclone in the Arabian Sea barrelling towards the Gujarat coast, parts of the Saurashtra-Kutch region received heavy rains accompanied by strong winds, the Met department said. This will be the second cyclone to hit the state in two years after Tauktae in May 2021.

Also read: Biparjoy: Gujarat has patchy track record in cyclone management

The department predicts the cyclone, which will rage at a maximum wind speed reaching up to 150 km per hour, to cause massive damage to roads, houses, standing crops, as well as disrupt railways. Power and communication may also be disrupted as the cyclone will rage at a heavy wind speed.

The IMD has issued a flood warning in Kutch, Devbhumbi Dwarka, Porbandar, Jamnagar and Morbi districts which it predicts astronomical tide to inundate low-lying areas during the cyclone’s landfall.

Trains suspended

The Western Railway (WR) on Wednesday decided to cancel or short- terminate the operation of a few more trains as a precautionary measure.

In a release, WR said seven more trains have been cancelled, three short-terminated and four other services short-originated in view of safety of passengers and train operations as the cyclone approaches the Gujarat coast.

The release said so far 76 trains have been cancelled, 36 short-terminated and 31 short-originated.

In addition, various safety and security precautions are being taken by the WR for train passengers in areas under its jurisdiction, according to the release.
Affected passengers will get a refund of fares as per rules, it added.

Rajasthan CM holds review meet

On Wednesday night, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot held a meeting with officials to review the arrangements made to deal with the impact of the cyclone.

The meeting was informed that heavy rainfall is likely to occur in Rajasthans Jodhpur and Udaipur divisions on June 16 and 17 under the influence of the cyclone. Strong winds with a speed of 60 to 70 km per hour are expected in the adjoining areas of Jaisalmer, Barmer, Jalore and Jodhpur on June 16 and in Jodhpur, Udaipur and Ajmer the next day.

A release from the CMO’s office said that Gehlot has directed all departments concerned to be ready for rescue and relief operations. Gehlot said that the district administration should be prepared for the rescue and relief of the common people and instructed all district collectors and related departments to operate 24-hour cyclone and flood control rooms.

“Instructions have been issued to deploy eight companies of SDRF in Jaipur, Kota, Bharatpur, Udaipur, Ajmer, Jodhpur and Bikaner and one company of NDRF in Kishangarh and Ajmer,” the release said.

The meteorological centre in Jaipur has issued warnings of extremely heavy rains in Barmer and Jalore, very heavy rains in Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Pali and Sirohi and heavy rains in Bikaner, Udaipur and Rajsamand on June 16. On June 17, heavy rains are expected in Barmer, Jalore, Pali, Jodhpur and Nagaur, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Ajmer, Bhilwara, Udaipur, Sirohi, Rajsamand, Churu, Sikar, Jaipur, Tonk, Bundi, Pratapgarh, Chittorgarh, Dungarpur and Banswara.

Heavy rains lash Gujarat

In Gujarat, of the total 74,345 people moved to temporary shelters in eight coastal districts, nearly 34,300 were evacuated in Kutch district alone, followed by 10,000 in Jamnagar, 9,243 in Morbi, 6,089 in Rajkot, 5,035 in Devbhumi Dwarka, 4,604 in Junagadh, 3,469 in Porbandar district and 1,605 in Gir Somnath district, said a release by the Gujarat government.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Wednesday night reached the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) in Gandhinagar and held a meeting with top officials to review the situation and steps taken so far by the administration in view of the approaching cyclone, said the release.

 Also read: Cyclone Biparjoy expected to cause heavy damage; IMD issues red alert

Meanwhile, two most famous temples of Gujarat — Dwarkadhish Temple in Devbhumi Dwarka and Somnath Temple in Gir Somnath district — will remain closed on Thursday for devotees, said another release.

The IMD said the intensity of rainfall in parts of the state would increase as the cyclone approaches, with isolated places in the districts of Kutch, Devbhumi Dwarka and Jamnagar likely to witness extremely heavy rains.

In 12 hours till 6 pm Wednesday, 65 talukas of districts in Saurashtra regions received rainfall, SEOC said in a release.

According to SEOC, 54 talukas across several districts received more than 10 mm of rainfall in the last 24 hours till Wednesday morning.

As per the government, 15 teams of NDRF (National Disaster Response Force), 12 of SDRF (State Disaster Response Force), 115 teams of the state road and building department, and 397 of the state electricity department have been deployed in different coastal districts.

That apart, Helos at INS Hansa in Goa and INS Shikra in Mumbai are ready for embarkation to Gujarat. P8i and Dornier aircraft ex-Hansa, Goa are also on the standby for aerial recce and transportation of relief material and personnel, the Indian Navy said.

“Officials of departments of electricity and road & building have also reached designated spots to restore connectivity and power supply. We have also deployed teams carrying HAM radio sets and satellite phones in the coastal region for better communication,” said Commissioner of Relief, Alok Kumar Pandey.

(With inputs from agencies)