Kolkata, May 23, 2020: The Indian Army on May 23 provided three columns to assist Kolkata City authorities deal with the aftermath of Cyclone Amphan, one of the worst storms to have formed over the Bay of Bengal in recent years.
Two more were sent to North and South 24 Parganas districts, according to news agency Press Trust of India.
This was after the Bengal Home Department tweeted saying it had requested Army support.
In a series of tweets this evening, the Home Department called for mobilization of “maximum strength. on 24×7 basis” for essential services like drinking water, sanitation and power supply.
The state also asked for aid from the Railways and the private sector in providing manpower and equipment, and said teams were at work clearing the remains of thousands of trees and buildings felled and destroyed as heavy rain and winds of up to 185 km per hour pummeled coastal Bengal.
The Home Department also said the Bengal police had been put on alert to deal with any issues and efforts were being made to increase available manpower despite significant resources being devoted to the coronavirus outbreak.
The announcement came after protests in several parts of Kolkata and neighboring districts over power and water problems. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has called for patience while the state works to restore normalcy.
At least 86 people were killed by Amphan, which also hit parts of Odisha and left both states planning evacuation and relief efforts while dealing with the COVID-19 crisis.
The Kolkata airport, which had been shut, was left flooded and many structures within damaged. Amphan also ripped through Bengal’s coastal districts of North and South 24 Parganas with heavy rain and windstorm blowing away thatched houses, uprooting trees, electric poles and flooding low-lying areas.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an aerial survey of affected regions on May 22 alongside Banerjee and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, after which he announced assistance worth 10 billion rupees for Bengal and 5 billion rupees for neighboring Odisha.
Amphan was the worst cyclone in Bengal in 283 years. In 1737, the Great Bengal Cyclone killed an estimated 300,000 people. In 1999, Odisha was hit by a super cyclone that left nearly 10,000 dead.
Source: ndtv.com