Tourists pack bags for home as cyclone 'Dana' approaches Odisha

BHUBANESWAR: Tourists and visitors to the state are scrambling to alter their plans and seek refuge as the impending severe cyclonic storm Dana threatened to disrupt the serene coastal regions of Odisha in the next few days. State govt’s advisory has triggered a mass departure of visitors, rendering the once-thriving beaches and tourist destinations of the coastal region desolate from Tuesday morning.
There was a commotion of passengers at bus stands and railway station as well as the airport in the capital city, as the visitors converged to make an exit before the cyclone hits.
“We came from Raipur to visit the Jagannath Temple and we planned to stay in Puri till Saturday. But now we are departing considering the impact of the cyclone,” Susmita Bhoi, a tourist at Bhubaneswar railway station, said.
On Monday, revenue and disaster management minister Suresh Pujari had urged outstation tourists to leave Puri by Tuesday afternoon in view of the impending cyclone.
He had also advised officials to restrict the entry of people into Puri from Tuesday. At the Baba Saheb Ambedkar Bus Terminus in Bhubaneswar, there was a similar scene with people seen queuing up at the ticket counters and concurrently at the bus bays to embark on their buses to their respective destinations.
“We have always heard of the repercussions cyclones have on the coastal pockets of Odisha. We don’t want to take any chance, so we are departing now,” Purandar Patra, a resident of Balangir boarding a bus at BSABT, said.
Yellow warning for thunderstorm and lightning has been issued for Balasore, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Kendrapada and Jagatsinghpur, the coastal districts with beaches and that are most visited by outstation tourists. “We were on a four-day visit to Odisha.
Our plan was to visit Balasore and Bhadrak to see the ports and beaches, but those are the areas where the cyclone will make the most significant impact. So, we cut short our visit and are leaving today,” Nirupam Jha, a visitor from Jharkhand, said.
Chief minister Mohan Majhi directed ministers to supervise cyclone management in districts which are likely to be affected.
As per the directive, industry minister Sampad Chandra Swain will supervise Jagatsinghpur, panchayati raj minister Rabi Nayak in Balasore, sports minister Suryabanshi Suraj in Bhadrak, housing and urban development minister Keshab Chandra Mahapatra in Mayurbhanj, deputy CMs Pravati Parida and K V Singh Deo in Puri and Kendrapada, respectively, commerce and transport minister Bibhuti Bhushan Jena in Ganjam, food and civil supplies minister Keshab Chandra Patra in Keonjhar and law minister Prithiviraj Harichandan in Cuttack.