Odisha crippled by heavy rainfall despite weakening of cyclone Phethai

Rains continued to lash several parts of Odisha on Tuesday due to the impact of cyclone Phethai, said the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Even though the cyclonic storm, which made landfall on the Andhra Pradesh coast on Monday, has weakened, many districts of Odisha have been experiencing heavy rainfall.

The depression over north coastal Andhra Pradesh weakened into a well marked low pressure. It has further weakened into a low-pressure area, which is likely to trigger the light to moderate rainfall in Odisha during the next 12 hours, said an IMD bulletin.

It advised fishermen not to venture into northwest Bay of Bengal and along and off Odisha coast in the next 12 hours, the bulletin said.

Special Relief Commissioner Bishnupada Sethi said that while Jharsuguda has recorded 75.3 mm of rain, Sambalpur has received 73.5 mm and Sundargarh 71.8 mm.

Sethi further said that adequate compensation will be disbursed from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) for the farmers based on the damage assessment report to be submitted by district collectors.