Cyclone only 50 km from Kolkata,likely to hit city soon

Cyclonic storm Aila with a wind speed of 100 kmph was only 50 km away from Kolkata and was likely to hit the city any time soon,the met office said. There was yet no change in the course of the cyclone and there was likelihood that it would rip through Kolkata,Howrah,Hooghly and South and North 24 Parganas by 5.30 pm,Regional Meteorological Centre Director G C Debnath said. Noting that the storm had caused massive damage in North and South 24 Parganas,East Midnapore,Howrah,Hooghly and Bardhaman districts,the minister said one lakh people were affected with 80,000 were shifted to safer places. Dasgupta said that according to latest reports,1,000 thatched houses collapsed in the storm which also breached 100 irrigation embankments. Tidal waves entered some areas. Dry food,30,000 pouches of drinking water and one lakh pieces of tarpaulin have been sent to the affected areas,Dasgupta said.

Leave of personnel associated with relief,rescue and emergency intervention in the affected districts have been cancelled till further notice,he said. Bhattacharjee said Minister for Sunderbans Affairs Kanti Ganguly has been sent to Patharpratima,Irrigation Minister Subhas Naskar to Kakdwip and Land Reforms Minister Abdur Rezzak Molla to Canning to supervise relief and rescue operations. The forest department has been asked to clear the roads of trees in the metropolis.