The level of preparedness and the response by the Andhra Pradesh and Central governments, along with their agencies, in the face of the severe cyclonic storm >Hudhud that ravaged Visakhapatnam on Sunday, have been commendable, and show that the lessons from previous natural calamities have indeed been learnt. Odisha was spared to a large extent, while the port city of Vizag bore the brunt of the cyclone. The airport, the naval establishments, roads, >power lines , and the entire infrastructure of this garden city stand testimony to the massive scale of destruction. The disaster management teams, along with the Navy and other agencies, prepared the ground before the cyclone made landfall by evacuating about two lakh people living in vulnerable areas along the coast. And, after the storm crossed the coast, rescue and relief operations began. It is going to take a few weeks to get the basic infrastructure back in place. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu rushed to review the situation, and >Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an aerial survey of both States on Tuesday. Mr. Naidu has asked for an ad hoc interim assistance of Rs.2,000 crore and Mr. Modi has offered >Rs.1,000 crore for immediate relief. Ensuring the availability of essential commodities, provision of drinking water and milk, and early resumption of power supply must remain urgent priorities.
The Andhra Pradesh-Odisha coastline has always remained vulnerable to high-intensity cyclones and natural calamities. The Bay of Bengal itself has been among the most frequented areas for severe cyclones, and Hudhud is the 75th such to hit the Andhra coast since 1871. With the evolution of the National Policy on Disaster Management and the creation of special teams to manage such disasters, India has clearly succeeded in vastly reducing the number of casualties over the years. But there is no way the damage could have been minimised. Neighbouring States have offered relief to get the power lines back on track and the Prime Minister should provide much-needed relief to Andhra Pradesh to overcome the havoc. The newly bifurcated State has already been seeking special category status to be eligible for substantial grants from the Centre to build a new capital and infrastructure. Mr. Naidu will do well to get foreign investors and the private sector to build a new airport for Visakhapatnam, where the badly mauled airport is under the Navy’s control and has not exactly been an asset to aid the development of this port city. The major National and State highways have suffered extensive damage and have to be relaid to their original standards. Given the massive number of trees felled by the cyclone, the authorities need to get the greenery back in place. It will be a major challenge to rebuild Visakhapatnam and its environs.
