Cyclone Vayu: Danger over Gujarat has ended, says CM Vijay Rupani

A day after Cyclone Vayu passed over Gujarat, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani conducted a review Friday and said that the “danger over the state has ended.”

“We are now free from adversity. Cyclone Vayu has turned westward into the Arabian Sea and so the danger over Gujarat has ended,” said Rupani at the State Emergency Operation Centre at Gandhinagar. He said the situation across the state’s coast has returned to normalcy.

“So we have decided to call back all the officials and ministers whom we had sent from here. Those 2.75 lakh people who were shifted will be allowed to return back to their homes. All those who were in the shelters will be given cash doles,” said Rupani while addressing media.

The chief minister said that the state government will be spending Rs 5.5 crore in providing financial assistance.

The very severe cyclonic storm Vayu has moved west-northwards with a speed of about 6 kmph in the last six hours and lay centred about 185 kms west of Veraval on Friday morning.

Over 46 NDRF teams that were stationed in Gujarat will also return in a couple of days. “From tomorrow onwards, those teams that have come from outside the state will be withdrawn,” Rupani said.

The administration received over 2000 complaints related to the power failures, while 144 villages said complete power loss. “From tomorrow, all port activities will be normalised. We are allowing them to work from today itself,” the chief minister said adding that the state transport buses have also started plying in all the 10 cyclone-affected districts of the state.

“From tomorrow, schools and colleges will also reopen in these places,” he added. Rupani said that the entire rescue and relief operations and learning from the cyclone will be documented so that it could be of help in the future.

Meanwhile, widespread rainfall has been reported in several parts of the state.