Bhubaneswar: As per preliminary assessment, the severe cyclone Dana has caused damages to public and private properties worth around Rs 600 crore in 14 districts of the state, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said here today.
Severe cyclonic storm Dana struck the eastern coast early on October 25, triggering torrential rain and high-speed winds uprooting trees and electric poles and causing significant damage to infrastructure and crops in 14 districts.
Speaking to media persons here, Shri Pujari said it was preliminarily estimated that the state suffered damages worth Rs 600 crore due to the cyclone. The final damage assessment report will come up in a day or two, he said.
He said that a total 166 blocks in 14 districts have been either partially or fully affected by the cyclone. The districts are- Angul, Balasore, Bhadrak, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Ganjam, Jagatsinghpur, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj, Nayagarh, Khurda, and Puri.
“Of the total 14 affected districts, 166 blocks were affected during the cyclone Dana. Of the total 166 blocks, 131 blocks were affected more or partially. As many as 11, 637 villages were affected during Cyclone Dana and the floods. The total population that was directly or indirectly affected is over 41 lakh,” said the Minister.
A huge volume of standing crops and houses have been damaged in the cyclone. Maximum volume of damages caused in the districts of Balasore, Bhadrak and Kendrapara. In terms of departments, the Energy department has caused severe damage while the Panchayati Raj department has yet to submit its damage report, he said.
After getting the final damage assessment report from Odisha, the central team would visit the state to hold discussion with the state government, informed the Minister.