PM Modi Shares Personal Experience After Cyclone Fani Survey, Stresses on Long-Term Preparedness

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held a review meeting with Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik and other senior officials in Bhubaneswar to take a stock of the situation in the wake of Cyclone Fani.

The meeting took place after the PM conducted an aerial survey of Puri and Kharda districts, which were among the worst-affected areas.

PM Modi lauded the Naveen Patnaik and his government for successfully carrying out the massive evacuation drive ahead of the cyclone’s landfall and further stressed on the need to have long-term disaster preparedness.

PM Modi said that coming from a coastal state, he understood the threats from cyclones and flooding. He recalled his own experience from the 1998-99 cyclone in Gujarat, where he was involved in rescue and relief work as a volunteer. “I have seen cyclones as a common citizen and handled natural disasters while in administration,” stated PM Modi.

According to one of the officials, PM Modi also enquired about the threat of diseases, epidemics and the health of those affected by the cyclone.

“He also asked about the condition of cattle, including mechanisms to dispose dead bodies of those animals who lost their lives due to the cyclone,” the official said.

The PM also pointed out the need of combining technological interface with human capabilities in rescue and relief operations. According to him, human resources should be engaged in any and which way in different stages of a disaster.

This can include call centres to warn and assist people or, as in the case of the Gujarat earthquake, different networks to impart specific skills to civilians.

Lauding the CM Naveen Patnaik and his government, PM Modi said that Odisha’s case will now be a heralded as a model to replicate in states across the country and the world.

The PM also remarked on the close communication between him and Patnaik during the time of the storm. “When the cyclone situation was approaching a few days ago, I had called the Chief Minister early in the morning,” he said and added that the communication between them had been fruitful.

Another official who was present at the meeting remarked, “This meeting was a great display of cooperative federalism. PM Modi said that the Centre and State worked together, which has benefitted people.”