Widespread damage and power outages as Cyclone Biparjoy lashes Gujarat
Darpan News Desk IANS, 16 Jun, 2023 11:55 AM
Gandhinagar, June 16 (IANS) Cyclone Biparjoy, noted for its strong winds and torrential rainfall, left a devastating trail after making a landfall across Gujarat's Kutch district.
As the cyclone gradually weakened on its northward trajectory, it had already disrupted everyday life on an unprecedented scale. Uprooted trees, injuries to 23 people, and extensive power failures marked its ferocity as it made landfall on Gujarat's coasts on Thursday evening.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) reported two casualties preceding the cyclone's arrival. A father-son cattle-rearing duo died while attempting to save their trapped goats from a flooded ravine in Bhavnagar district the same day.
Gujarat's relief commissioner, Alok Singh confirmed that the cyclone has resulted in 24 animal fatalities, 524 toppled trees, and a slew of damaged electric poles resulting in power outages across 940 villages. Morbi district clocking over 115-120 kilometers per hour and heavy rainfall, witnessed over 300 electric poles being destroyed. This damage led to power outages across 45 villages, as the cyclone made its aggressive landfall on Thursday evening.
Paschim Gujarat Vij Company Limited (PGVCL) officials confirm that efforts to restore power are in full swing in nine of the affected villages.
With Biparjoy now losing strength, Gujarat Health Minister Rushikesh Patel reported no casualties in the Kutch district.
He further stated that road clearance operations are being carried out across several parts of the coastal districts. He said, "We are analysing the situation at the Control room in Kutch. No need to worry, the government is making every effort to bring things to normal."
In preparation for Biparjoy's anticipated landfall, over 180,000 individuals were relocated to safer zones, indicating the severity of the cyclone's expected impact.
While addressing a rally of BJP workers in Assam' Dibrugarh, Shah also expressed confidence that the BJP will be victorious in at least 12 out of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in the state. According to him, the party is set to win big in the entire northeast, which accounts for a total of 25 seats in Lok Sabha.
The Chief Minister said Guru's supreme sacrifice as protector of 'dharma' was unparalleled in the history of mankind and stands out as an example for humanity. He said this museum is a humble tribute to this great Sikh Guru who made unparalleled sacrifices to uphold the value of righteousness, truth and freedom of faith.
The Air India flight AI 111 scheduled to operate on the Delhi-London-Heathrow route returned shortly after departure. An FIR was lodged as the accused person allegedly misbehaved and caused physical harm to two of the cabin crew members.
The daily positivity rate was at 6.91 per cent while weekly positivity rate stood at 3.67 per cent as per the data released by the Ministry. The active caseload currently stands at 35,199. The recovery rate is at 98.73 per cent.
The accused were identified as Sonu Kumar, 27, his brother-in-law Sandeep, and Jony alias Rocky, all residents of Haryana. Police said that they have recovered 113 ATMS cards of various bank, and two PayTm machines from the possession of the accused, and claimed to have solved 14 cases of cheating with the trio's arrest.
The livestock sector, he said, with rapid growth is becoming a major contributor to the growth of the agriculture and allied sector. "The livestock sector is likely to grow by 4.18 per cent in 2022-23," Cheema said, while adding the livestock sector's share in total Gross State Value Added (GSVA) of Punjab was 11.1 per cent during 2022-23.
