PM Modi to visit Cyclone Ockhi hit Tamil Nadu and Kerala Today

PM Modi to visit Cyclone Ockhi hit Tamil Nadu and Kerala Today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Lakshadweep,Tamil Nadu and Kerala today to assess the damage caused by cyclone Ockhi, which left a trail of destruction in the two states and the Union Territory. 

The Prime Minister, on a one-day visit, would review the situation in the aftermath of the cyclone and status of relief operations at Kavaratti, Kanyakumari and Thiruvananthapuram, official sources said. 

PM Modi would fly to Agatti from Mangaluru at around 7.35 AM and leave for Kavratti. After nearly an hour’s programme, he would return to Agatti and fly to Thiruvananthapuram, official sources in Lakshadweep said. 

On reaching the state capital at around 1.50 PM, he would take a helicopter to Kanyakumari, where he will meet officials and assess the damage caused by the cyclone. 

The Prime Minister would also get a first hand report from the affected fishermen, district officials at Kanyakumari told news agency. 

The prime minister would return to Thiruvananthapuram and visit Poonthura, a nearby fishing village from where some of the deceased fishermen hailed. 

PM Modi would then meet Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and some of his cabinet colleagues, including revenue minister E Chandrasekharan and Fisheries minister J Mercykutty at the Raj Bhavan, according to sources in the Chief Minister’s office. 

Chief Secretary KM Abraham would also give a presentation on the calamity and the devastation caused in coastal regions of the state capital, including Poonthura, Vizhinjam, Pozhiyur and Adimalithura. 

After the meeting, the Prime Minister will leave for Delhi. 

The Kerala Chief Minister had earlier met Union Home minister Rajnath Singh and sought assistance worth Rs. 1,843 crore from the centre. The state also wanted the centre to declare cyclone Ockhi as a national disaster. 

According to government estimates, 70 people have died so far in Kerala and around 105 people are still missing. Meanwhile, search operations are on for the missing fishermen with the state government seeking support of local boat owners. 

The government has decided to extend the search operations up to the Goan shores. 

The cyclone that hit the state on November 29-30 had also caused large-scale damage to crops and property.