Mumbai experienced unseasonal showers following the Cyclone Ockhi on Monday. (PTI)
Maharashtra government declared holiday in schools and colleges in Mumbai and adjoining districts tomorrow, as a precautionary measure against Cylcone Ockhi. According to the met department, Mumbai will witness light to moderate rainfall. Mumbai Disaster Management unit of the BMC or the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation issued advisory against visiting the beaches today and tomorrow. The cyclone is expected to make landfall on the coast of Maharashtra within the next 48 hours. Cyclone Ockhi has claimed at least 20 lives with hundreds still missing. Search and rescue operations in the southeast Arabian Sea and Lakshadweep and Minicoy islands continue and the Navy has deployed 10 naval ships and 8 aircraft, round the clock service late last night for the ongoing rescue operations.
Here are the live updates of Cyclone Ockhi:
2,604 fishermen from several parts of Tamil Nadu, including 220 from Kanyakumari district stranded at sea due to Cyclone Ockhi have been rescued, Chief Minister K Palaniswami said.
Schools Shut In Mumbai, Parts Of Maharashtra As Cyclone Ockhi Nears: 10 FactsRains started in Mumbai this afternoon as Cyclone Ockhi neared the coast. The met office predicts that it will weaken before it hits and settle in the area near Surat as a deep depression by tomorrow night. Schools in four districts of Maharashtra, and the Mumbai Metropolitan area, have been closed tomorrow as a precautionary measure.
Break-down equipment such as accident relief train, accident relief medical van, road ART has been kept on standby for any eventuality: Central Railway Mumbai Division
More than 250 railway police force and Maharashtra State Security Force personnel have been deployed on crowd management & other related activities at stations, yards etc: Central Railway Mumbai Division, reports news agency ANI
All emergency numbers have been updated. Emergency cell has been opened at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and Kalyan: Central Railway Mumbai Division
Maharashtra government declares precautionary holiday on December 5, for schools and colleges in Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Sindhudurga, Thane, Raigad and Palghar districts.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh spoke to Home Minister Rajnath Singh, offered to send a stock of 100 MT of rice to those affected by Cyclone Ockhi in Lakshadweep, according to news agency ANI.
The Coast Guard tasked 12 ships and deployed three Dornier aircraft and two helicopters for sea-air coordinated search and rescue assistance to the stranded fishermen at sea: Inspector General K R Nautiyal
19 fishermen were rescued today, says Inspector General K R Nautiyal, Commander, Coast Guard Region
Fishermen along and off Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu coasts are advised not to venture into the sea during 6th to 8th December: NDMA
NDMA advises fishermen not to venture into the sea along and off south Gujarat, north Maharashtra coasts and Nicobar Islands from December 4 to 6.
Over the next 24 hours, a well marked low pressure area that lies over southeast Bay of Bengal and adjoining south Andaman Sea is very likely to become a depression, according to the NDMA. It could further intensify into a deep depression during the subsequent 48 hours.
Damage expected over south Gujarat (Valsad, Surat, Navsari, Bharuch, Dang, Tapi, Amreli, Gir- Somnath, Bhavnagar districts), Daman, Diu, and Dadra, Nagar Haveli and north Konkan districts of Maharashtra (Palghar, Thane, Raigarh, and Greater Mumbai), tweets NDMA
Light to moderate rainfall very likely at a few places over north Konkan including Mumbai today, according to NDMA. Palghar, Thane, Raigarh, Greater Mumbai, Dhule, Nandurbar, Nashik, Jalgaon, Ahmednagar and Pune districts likely to receive rainfall tomorrow.
The NDMA tweeted that there would be light to moderate rainfall is very likely at a few places over Saurashtra and South Gujarat region today and parts of South Gujarat tomorrow.
Cyclone Ockhi that is passing at about 45 kilometres of the coast of Maharashtra is likely to make landfall on 6th December in the morning near the Gulf of Khambat or Surat. Inspector General K R Nautiyal of the Indian Coastguard said all their ships will be on duty till the cyclone makes landfall
The NCMC is monitoring the situation and has provided all necessary help to the affected states and union territory, he said. If necessary, additional help would be provided, the spokesperson said.
The National Crisis Management Committee, headed by Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha, has reviewed rescue and relief operations being carried out in high seas and coastal areas hit by cyclone Ockhi. In a series of meetings, the NCMC took stock of the situation in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Lakshadweep, an official spokesperson said today.
Hundreds of women held protest on the roads in Neerodi village demanding the authorities trace their loved ones who are still missing since Ockhi struck southern Tamil Nadu and Kerala on November 30.
"I appealed to them that the search operations with even warships are going on and will continue till the last of the missing fishermen is brought back. I will not lose hope as the joint search operations have rescued fishermen who had ventured into the seas 15 days back," Ms Niramala said.
Defence Minister Addressed reporters at the Thiruvananthapuram airport, just before boarding her flight to Delhi, said she visited two fishing villages in Vizhinjam and Poonthura in Kerala and found that the people were under "severe stress and deep distress".
An Indian Navy ship today located a fishing boat with nine crew members, reportedly missing from this city for the last 15 days, off Lakshadweep, a Defence spokesman said.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman reviews the situation in Kerala. Meets the Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at the Air Force Station in Thiruvananthapuram.
55 rescued in major search and rescue Navy operations off Lakshadweep islands and Kerala coastline.
Rescue operations at Kavaratti islands.
The Defence Minister at Neerodi village in Kanyakumari
Ms Sitharaman met the Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, O Pannerselvam along with senior ministers, officers of Navy, coastguard and district officials yesterday.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman reviewed the search and rescue operations in Tamil Nadu and Kerala with senior officials yesterday.
According to a press release, The total relief material carried would sustain approximately 5,000 people for over seven days. Additionally, all naval units in the vicinity of the Lakshadweep and Minicoy islands had been directed to provide fresh water in consultation with the local administration. Additional units will also be deployed to augment water
supply.
Naval ships 'Chennai', 'Trikand' and 'Kolkata' were stationed around the Lakshadweep islands with relief materials. The ships were equipped with desalination plants and will be able to provide the islands fresh water as and when required.
As search and rescue operations in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, bore the brunt of the winds and rain over the weekend, still continue. The alert on the coastline is still on and fishermen in north Tamil Nadu and South Andhra coast have been asked not to venture out to the Arabian sea for the next 48 hours.