Cyclone Nivar: CM Jagan Asks District Collectors to Be on Alert

Heavy rainfall is expected in south, coastal and Rayalaseema districts of Andhra Pradesh.

File image of Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy.

(Photo: PTI) 

Though Cyclone Nivar is expected to make landfall in Tamil Nadu, several parts of south coastal Andhra Pradesh and Rayalaseema districts are expected to receive heavy rainfall.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday, 24 November, asked district collectors to be on high alert and take all necessary precautionary measures to prevent damage.

The Chief Minister held a video conference with collectors of SPS Nellore, Prakasam, Guntur, Krishna, Chittoor, Kadapa, Kurnool and Anantapuramu districts and reviewed the situation in view of the cyclone.

Though the cyclone will make landfall in Tamil Nadu, heavy rains are likely in south coastal and Rayalaseema districts from Wednesday evening, the Chief Minister said.

“About 11-20 cm of rainfall is expected in SPS Nellore, Chittoor, parts of Kadapa, coastal areas of Prakasam, Kurnool and Anantapuramu districts. Winds with speed ranging from 65-75 kmph are also likely. We have to be geared up for this.” 

Chief Minister Jagan Reddy told the collectors.

Jagan asked collectors of SPS Nellore, Chittoor and Prakasam districts to concentrate on opening relief camps wherever required for moving people to safety. The prime focus should be on preventing loss of lives and damage to property, he added.

Jagan pointed out that reservoirs and tanks were filled to the brim due to heavy rains in October. Fresh rains could cause breaches to tanks and hence they should be constantly monitored and precautionary measures are taken to prevent breaches.

He also directed the officials to keep NDRF (National Disaster Response Force) and SDRF (State Disaster Response Force) teams ready for any emergency.

Meanwhile, the State Disaster Management Commissioner K Kanna Babu said in a release that two SDRF teams and one of the NDRF were positioned in SPS Nellore district while SDRF teams were also sent to Prakasam and Chittoor districts.

By dusk on Tuesday, no rainfall was recorded in all the 16 monitored places in Andhra Pradesh while Kurnool recorded a maximum temperature of 33 degree Celsius.

Cyclone Nivar is expected to cross the Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coasts between Karaikal and Mamallapuram as a very severe cyclonic storm late Wednesday evening.

(This article has been republished in arrangement with The News Minute)