Cyclone Mocha may hit state on May 10, control rooms to be set up in coastal districts

MP | 3 May 2023 | Kolkata: Chief Secretary H K Dwivedi on Tuesday instructed the administration to immediately set up control rooms in the coastal districts with the weather department predicting the development of a cyclonic storm named ‘Mocha’ in the Bay of Bengal around May 10. 

The control rooms in other districts should start functioning from June 1 and will remain in operation till the middle of August which is usually the time of monsoon in Bengal. Dwivedi chaired a meeting to take stock of monsoon preparedness at Nabanna Sabhaghar in which senior officials from the state Irrigation, Disaster Management department, Public Works Department Central Water Commission, Alipore weather office, Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Indian Army, Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) and concerned officials from state and central government departments were present. 

Control rooms usually become operational in June but in the wake of the cyclonic prediction, the ones in the coastal districts of South and North 24-Parganas and East Midnapore will be operational with immediate effect. 

“It’s too early to predict the movement of the cyclone and hence its impact cannot be ascertained as yet, but Chief Secretary has directed all concerned departments to be on alert and make necessary arrangements so that proper rehabilitation and relief can be provided if the cyclone brings any effect in the state,” a senior Nabanna official present in the meeting said. 

In the last three years, in May there have been instances of cyclones among which Amphan in 2020 had the most severe effect on Bengal. Yaas also had some effect on the state in May 2021, however, cyclone Asani in 2022 did not affect Bengal. According to sources, Dwivedi directed the state Irrigation department to identify the embankments that are yet to be repaired and mend them on a war footing. 

He further asked the department to maintain constant touch with the Damodar Valley Corporation so that the release of water from its dams — Panchet and Maithon can be regulated. There have been instances in the past when parts of Howrah and Hooghly have been inundated due to the indiscriminate release of water from DVC during monsoon. 

The Chief Secretary has asked the concerned departments to maintain proper coordination so that if there is any alert of Cyclone Mocha hitting the state, measures can be taken for immediate relief and rehabilitation. Meanwhile, several South Bengal districts may continue to witness thunderstorms and scattered rainfall till May 4 while mercury will soar from May 5, predicted the Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore. 

“Two low pressure troughs have been situated at Uttar Pradesh and Chattisgarh. There is likely to be another pressure zone over Bangladesh resulting in rainfall in several South Bengal districts in the next two days. Most of the South Bengal districts will receive thundershowers in some parts till May 4. Several North Bengal districts will also witness rainfall,” a weather official said. 

https://www.millenniumpost.in/bengal/cyclone-mocha-may-hit-state-on-may-10-control-rooms-to-be-set-up-in-coastal-districts-517162