Kolkata: At least 72 people have died in West Bengal due to Cyclone ‘Amphan’. This was disclosed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee here Thursday. Mamata Banerjee urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the affected districts and provide help to ‘rebuild those areas from scratch’. The chief minister also announced a compensation of Rs 2,00,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh for family members of those deceased.
72 killed due to cyclone ‘Amphan’
“So far as per the reports we have received, 72 people have died due to cyclone ‘Amphan’. Two districts – North and South 24 Parganas are completely devastated. We have to rebuild those districts from scratch. I would urge the Central government to extend all help to West Bengal,” Banerjee said after conducting a review meeting with officials.
“I will visit the affected areas very soon. The restoration work will start soon. A large part of North and South 24 Parganas and Kolkata are facing massive power cuts since last (Wednesday) evening. Even telephone and mobile connections are down,” informed the chief minister.
“I have never witnessed such a fierce cyclone and destruction in my life. I would request Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come and visit cyclone ‘Amphan’-affected areas,” Banerjee added.
Additional NDRF teams for West Bengal
In a separate development four additional teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) are being airlifted here. It is being done on the request of the West Bengal government. They will reach here by late Thursday evening. This was disclosed evening by NDRF chief SN Pradhan.
Pradhan said two teams each from Chennai and Pune are being airlifted to Kolkata. They will be at the disposal of the West Bengal government.
Damage extensive in West Bengal
Pradhan said feedback has been received from states that have been battered by cyclone ‘Amphan’. “Life will start returning to normal in impact zones of Odisha within 24-48 hours. However West Bengal has suffered more damage,” Pradhan said. “The extent of the damage done by the cyclonic storm will become clear after surveys in the coming days,” Pradhan added.
Agencies
