Central team arrives in Odisha to assess damage done by Cyclone Fani

On Sunday, a central nine-member team arrived in Odisha to assess the damage caused by Cyclone Fani that ravaged the coastal districts of the state on May 3 and killed 64. Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs Vivek Bharadwaj leads the inter-ministerial team.

Before starting the on – the-spot evaluation in the affected areas on Monday, Special Relief Commissioner BP Sethi will brief the team members. The team is going to be divided into two groups. On May 13 and 14, they will visit the districts of Puri and Khurda, the worst affected by the cyclone.

They will visit some of the affected areas in the area of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation on May 15 before holding a meeting with senior officials of the state, including Chief Secretary A Padhi.

The team will submit its report to the Center after completing the visit, an official said.

Cyclone Fani rooted about 14 lakh trees, including thousands of coconut and mango trees.

The cyclone has also destroyed agricultural land in the the coastal areas. According to the state government’s preliminary assessment, more than 30 per cent crop has been damaged in Odisha due the cyclone.