After effects of Amphan
After effects of Amphan
Just like the pandemic Covid -19, the super cyclone Amphan wreaked havoc on the lives of the residents of West Bengal and Odisha. It was one of the most merciless natural disasters that the two states had ever witnessed. Parts of Bangladesh too were badly hit by this cyclone that flew in and out of the states at a recorded speed of more 260 km/hr. The severity of the storm was rather dramatic. Despite the precautions taken by the State authorities in accordance with the warnings issued by the weather department, there was minimal loss of life and massive scale destruction.
The citizens of the metropolis, Kolkata, had not seen such level of damage in their lives. Despite being away from the sea side, the Kolkatans bore witness to the devastation the super cyclone brought with it. The trees of the city perhaps took the maximum brunt of this storm, and fell down all along the city streets and roads. The army and the NDRF as well as the SDRF had to be deployed to restore the normalcy of the city. Heavy duty machines and skilled labour had to be deployed to remove the felled trees to clear the roads. The broken cables of electricity, the fallen electrical poles and the jammed drainage system along with the damaged water lines, throughout the city, needed attention simultaneously.
The scene in Odisha was not much different from the city; there too the broken trees and poles obstructed roads and pathways. People lost their houses but could save their lives owing to the preventive measures of evacuation exercised by the local governments. The places such as Kendrapara and Balasore in Odisha witnessed large scale ravaging by this storm with a speed of 120km/hr. The low-lying areas fell at a risk of floods because of the persistent torrents of rain. There was extensive damage to the crops, which directly contributed to the reduction in the food resources of the state. Vegetables and grains growing on the fields were brutally wiped out leaving the lands barren and without any vegetation. The unimaginable damage to the betel vines, one of the primary sources of income for the people of Dhinkia and Nuagaon panchayats, can be cited as a huge loss as an after effect of the super cyclone. The disconnection of electricity all over the state further deepened the misery of the residents.
If the condition of the States of West Bengal and Odisha was terrible, what happened to the Sunderbans was surely heart rendering. The famous mangrove forests of the Sunderbans on the border of Bangladesh and West Bengal were wiped off from the face of the earth. Acres after acres of land were washed away by the cyclone and the incessant rain that accompanied it. The aftermath of the cyclone revealed that about 28% of these evergreen forests had been reduced to debris. The Patharpratima and Kultali areas of the South 24 Parganas were mostly destroyed and after the storm had passed many of the trees were noticed to have turned yellow owing to the salinity of the soil. The extent of the damage caused to the mangrove trees make the experts doubt the number of years it would take to get back those trees!
The super cyclone came as a curse on all these States and took away their livelihood, their dwelling places and consequently their normalcy of life. But despite displaying such a despoiling attitude, the cyclone was not able to dampen the spirits of the people of these places who are still fighting back to get their life back on track.
© Arked
Just like the pandemic Covid -19, the super cyclone Amphan wreaked havoc on the lives of the residents of West Bengal and Odisha. It was one of the most merciless natural disasters that the two states had ever witnessed. Parts of Bangladesh too were badly hit by this cyclone that flew in and out of the states at a recorded speed of more 260 km/hr. The severity of the storm was rather dramatic. Despite the precautions taken by the State authorities in accordance with the warnings issued by the weather department, there was minimal loss of life and massive scale destruction.
The citizens of the metropolis, Kolkata, had not seen such level of damage in their lives. Despite being away from the sea side, the Kolkatans bore witness to the devastation the super cyclone brought with it. The trees of the city perhaps took the maximum brunt of this storm, and fell down all along the city streets and roads. The army and the NDRF as well as the SDRF had to be deployed to restore the normalcy of the city. Heavy duty machines and skilled labour had to be deployed to remove the felled trees to clear the roads. The broken cables of electricity, the fallen electrical poles and the jammed drainage system along with the damaged water lines, throughout the city, needed attention simultaneously.
The scene in Odisha was not much different from the city; there too the broken trees and poles obstructed roads and pathways. People lost their houses but could save their lives owing to the preventive measures of evacuation exercised by the local governments. The places such as Kendrapara and Balasore in Odisha witnessed large scale ravaging by this storm with a speed of 120km/hr. The low-lying areas fell at a risk of floods because of the persistent torrents of rain. There was extensive damage to the crops, which directly contributed to the reduction in the food resources of the state. Vegetables and grains growing on the fields were brutally wiped out leaving the lands barren and without any vegetation. The unimaginable damage to the betel vines, one of the primary sources of income for the people of Dhinkia and Nuagaon panchayats, can be cited as a huge loss as an after effect of the super cyclone. The disconnection of electricity all over the state further deepened the misery of the residents.
If the condition of the States of West Bengal and Odisha was terrible, what happened to the Sunderbans was surely heart rendering. The famous mangrove forests of the Sunderbans on the border of Bangladesh and West Bengal were wiped off from the face of the earth. Acres after acres of land were washed away by the cyclone and the incessant rain that accompanied it. The aftermath of the cyclone revealed that about 28% of these evergreen forests had been reduced to debris. The Patharpratima and Kultali areas of the South 24 Parganas were mostly destroyed and after the storm had passed many of the trees were noticed to have turned yellow owing to the salinity of the soil. The extent of the damage caused to the mangrove trees make the experts doubt the number of years it would take to get back those trees!
The super cyclone came as a curse on all these States and took away their livelihood, their dwelling places and consequently their normalcy of life. But despite displaying such a despoiling attitude, the cyclone was not able to dampen the spirits of the people of these places who are still fighting back to get their life back on track.
© Arked