AP cyclone warning: Coastal Guntur villages put on high alert

GUNTUR: About 35 villages along the coast in Guntur district have been put on high alert following a cyclone warning.

District collector Kona Sasidhar has directed all the officials in Repalle, Nizampatnam, Karlapalem and Bapatla not to leave the headquarters without permission. The leaves of the staff have also been cancelled in view of the severe cyclone warning issued by the IMD.

Sasidhar held an emergency teleconference with all the tehsildars and mandal development officers on Thursday evening.

He said directed the field level officials to gear up to tackle the cyclone which is expected to hit the region anytime between December 16 and 17. After finding that about 133 fishermen boats were yet to return home, the district collector directed the officials of the fisheries department to immediately send emergency wireless messages to fishermen.

The collector said that special officers would be appointed in all the cyclone-prone areas who would be asked to stay put in the mandals allocated to them till the situation gets normalised.

“Get fully ready with sufficient stocks of rice and essential commodities. Make the cyclone relief centres functioning to evacuate people if needed,” he asked the officials. He said that emergency medicines should also be kept ready to handle the situation.

“Those farmers who are yet to harvest the crop, it is better to deploy harvest machines and cut the crop before the cyclone hits the region,” said collector.

Meanwhile, the state government has also decided to put the semi-Christmas celebrations to be hosted by the chief minister Chandrababu Naidu on December 17 on hold keeping in view of the cyclone warning.

“A final call with regard to the CM hosting the semi-Christmas celebrations will be taken after studying the weather conditions in the wake of cyclone warning,” said social welfare minister Nakka Anand Babu.