Cyclone Remal has claimed the lives of as many as 37 people in the North East with the state of Mizoram worst hit by heavy rains and thunderstorms.
Hundreds of people in the North Eastern states including Manipur, Assam and Meghalaya have gone missing while several others have been forced to take shelter in relief camps.
The cyclone made landfall in West Bengal earlier this week, killing 16 people across the state and Bangladesh.
Cyclone Remal is the first of the frequent storms expected to pound the low-lying coasts of the South Asian neighbours this year as climate change drives up surface temperatures at sea.
Mizoram worst-hit state
In Mizoram, where a stone quarry collapsed in Aizawl due to incessant rains on Tuesday, at least 27 people have died while rescue operations continue to locate the missing people.
Chief Minister Lalduhoma convened an emergency meeting with Home Minister K Sapdanga, Chief Secretary Renu Sharma and other senior officials to take stock of the situation, a senior official said.
He has also announced Rs 4 lakh ex gratia for the families of those killed in the stone quarry collapse and calamities caused by rain.
Lalduhoma said the government earmarked Rs 15 crore to tackle disasters triggered by rain, which occurred as an after-effect of the cyclone.
Mamata blames centre
Meanwhile, the trail of destruction left behind by the cyclone has triggered a political slugfest with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was lying about the centre providing all the necessary help to the state government to handle the cyclone.
“We shifted nearly 46 lakh people (to safer places) and saved their lives,” the chief minister said, addressing an election rally at Behala in Kolkata.
Banerjee said that it was unfortunate that seven people died because of the cyclone, lakhs of people could have lost their lives if the state administration had not taken measures in time.
“You (Modi) should think before saying something,” the TMC supremo said, seeking to give a retort to the PM’s comments in his election speeches at Jadavpur and Ashoknagar on Tuesday.
With inputs from agencies
Link to article –
Cyclone Remal: Death toll reaches 37 in North East, Mizoram worst-hit state
