How prepared is Maharashtra to face Cyclone Nisarga?

Maharashtra has put in place several measures but keeping its fingers crossed as Cyclone Nisarga is hours away from hitting the coastal Konkan belt.

If the cyclonic formation, currently around 400 kms deep in Arabian Sea, goes as forecast by weathermen, it would be the worst-ever in documented history of Mumbai and the larger Mumbai metropolitan region (MMR).

Cyclone Nisarga is expected to make a landfall in Alibaug, the district headquarters of Raigad, nearly 90 kms from downtown Mumbai, around Wednesday noon. It would pass through Palghar before heading towards neighbouring Gujarat state.

Follow live updates on Nisarga

According to Tuesday evening bulletins form IMD's Mumbai and Pune stations, the "deep depression" is very likely to intensify into a "severe cyclonic storm". It is very likely to move nearly northwards during next few hours, recurve north-northeastwards, thereafter, cross North Konkan and adjoining South Gujarat coast between Harihareshwar and Daman, close to Alibaug.

A maximum sustained wind speed of 100-110 kmph gusting to 120 kmph, could be witnessed in the Mumbai-MMR. Since Monday, the South Konkan region of Goa and twin districts of Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri has been receiving rainfall.

At a Cabinet meeting, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray reviewed the overall COVID-19 pandemic scenario and the cyclone preparedness.

Mumbai City district's guardian minister Aditya Thackeray and his Mumbai Suburban counterpart Aslam Sheikh held meetings with BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) chief and reviewed the emerging scenario in Mumbai, considering the fact that it is flood-prone and several slum clusters are in low-lying areas.

A 24-hour control room has been set up at Mantralaya, the state secretariat, for coordination with various rescue and relief agencies like NDRF and Indian Army, Indian Navy and Indian Air Force.

More than a dozen companies of NDRF have been sent to the seven Konkan region districts. The Maharashtra government and IMD have asked fishermen, who are deep in the sea to return back as soon as possible - and regular radio messages are being passed onto them. Around 200-plus boats are still at sea, when last reports came in.

The government has also asked the district administration to evacuate people staying in kutcha houses on coastal areas. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport has been asked to allow all cyclone-related SOPs and drills.

The Mumbai Port Trust, the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust at Nhava Sheva in Raigad, the Central Railway, Western Railway and Konkan Railway have scaled up level of alertness.
Indian Coast Guard aircraft and ships are relaying warnings to fishing boats and merchant vessels.

Cautionary signals have been hoisted in all the ports along the 760-kms-long coastline of Maharashtra.