Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday spoke to the chief ministers of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa besides the lieutenant governor of Daman and Diu regarding preparation and response to deal with cylone Tauktae.
Cyclonic storm Tauktae over the Arabian Sea led to very strong winds blowing at a speed of 114 kmph in Mumbai, civic officials said. On Monday, residents of Mumbai woke up witnessing gusty winds and heavy showers due to the cyclone. The city continued to be battered by heavy rains through the day.
State Minority Affairs Minister Nawab Malik said 193 COVID-19 patients admitted in a makeshift centre in Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex had been shifted to other BMC-run hospitals due to the heavy rains that lashed the city. The police have been asked to maintain close coordination with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation officials ward-wise to implement mitigation measures, an official told PTI.
Over 12,000 citizens were relocated to safer places from Maharashtra’s coastal areas. Those relocated include 8,380 people in Raigad, 3,896 in Ratnagiri, and 144 in Sindhudurg districts. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said that Cyclone Tauktae has now intensified into an “extremely severe cyclonic storm”. It is likely to reach Gujarat coast by Monday evening and cross the state coast between 8 pm and 11 pm, the IMD said.
