News Analysis India

Tag: Cyclone Tauktae

  • Mumbai: Owner of tugboat that sank during cyclone Tauktae booked for culpable homicide

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: A case of culpable homicide has been registered in Mumbai against the owner of Varaprada tugboat that sank in the Arabian Sea during last month’s cyclone Tauktae, in which 11 persons were killed, an official said on Friday.

    Barge P305 and Varaprada – both support vessels working for the state-run ONGC’s offshore oilfields near Mumbai – had borne the brunt of cyclone Tauktae, which made landfall on Gujarat coast on May 17.

    “At least 11 personnel, who were working on the tugboat, had died in the incident. During the rescue operation, two of its workmen were rescued by the Navy teams,” the official said.

    An FIR under IPC section 304 (2) (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 34 (common intention) was registered against the tugboat owner on Thursday at the Yellow Gate police station on the complaint of chief engineer of the boat and one of survivors, he said.

    Nobody has been arrested in this connection so far and the probe is underway, he added.

    A total of 274 crew were reported missing on May 17 (261 from Barge P305 and 13 from Tug Varaprada).

    While 186 survivors from P305 and two from Varaprada were picked up at sea, 70 mortal remains (bodies) were recovered at sea by ships of Indian Navy and Coast Guard.

    Besides, eight bodies were recovered along the coast in Raigad district of Maharashtra and another eight bodies washed ashore the Gujarat coast near Valsad, officials had said.

  • Mumbai: Owner of tugboat that sank during cyclone Tauktae booked for culpable homicide . Mumbai: Owner of tugboat that sank during cyclone Tauktae booked for culpable homicide 

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: A case of culpable homicide has been registered in Mumbai against the owner of Varaprada tugboat that sank in the Arabian Sea during last month’s cyclone Tauktae, in which 11 persons were killed, an official said on Friday.

    Barge P305 and Varaprada – both support vessels working for the state-run ONGC’s offshore oilfields near Mumbai – had borne the brunt of cyclone Tauktae, which made landfall on Gujarat coast on May 17.

    “At least 11 personnel, who were working on the tugboat, had died in the incident. During the rescue operation, two of its workmen were rescued by the Navy teams,” the official said.

    An FIR under IPC section 304 (2) (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 34 (common intention) was registered against the tugboat owner on Thursday at the Yellow Gate police station on the complaint of chief engineer of the boat and one of survivors, he said.

    Nobody has been arrested in this connection so far and the probe is underway, he added.

    A total of 274 crew were reported missing on May 17 (261 from Barge P305 and 13 from Tug Varaprada).

    While 186 survivors from P305 and two from Varaprada were picked up at sea, 70 mortal remains (bodies) were recovered at sea by ships of Indian Navy and Coast Guard.

    Besides, eight bodies were recovered along the coast in Raigad district of Maharashtra and another eight bodies washed ashore the Gujarat coast near Valsad, officials had said.

  • Cyclone Tauktae: Body of missing captain of barge P305 identified

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: The body of Rakesh Ballav, missing captain of the ill-fated barge P305 which sank off the Mumbai coast when cyclone Tauktae struck last month, has been identified through DNA matching, a police official said on Friday.

    The body was identified after the DNA sample of his close family member matched, the official said.

    Captain Ballav was missing since barge P305 sank in the Arabian Sea on May 16.

    The police had sent DNA samples of unidentified bodies to Forensic Science Lab at Kalina here.

    While ten bodies including that of Ballav were identified, more than 20 bodies are yet to be identified, the official said.

    P305, an accommodation barge, was among the vessels deployed by a contractor firm at state-run ONGC’s oil and gas fields near Mumbai.

    A total of 274 crew members were reported missing on May 17, including 261 from tbe barge.

    The Navy and Coast Guard rescued 188 persons.

  • Cyclone Tauktae: Gujarat announces Rs 105 crore relief for fishermen

    By PTI
    AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat government has announced a relief package of Rs 105 crore for fishermen affected by cyclone Tauktae which caused severe damage in the state’s coastal belt last month, officials said on Wednesday.

    Chief Minister Vijay Rupani took the decision about the relief package after reviewing the situation during a meeting on Tuesday evening, an official release said.

    Cyclone Tauktae hit the Gujarat coast on May 17 night with a very high wind speed of about 220 kmph.

    It caused major damage to anchored boats, fishing nets, trawlers and marine infrastructure at Jafrabad, Rajula, Saiyad Rajpara, Shiyal Bet and Nava Bandar ports of the state, the release said, adding that houses of fishermen were also damaged in the cyclone.

    As part of the package, the state government would pay a collective amount of Rs 25 crore to the affected fishermen to compensate the damage caused to over 1,000 small and large sized boats.

    For a fully damaged small sized boat, the government would pay 50 per cent of the boat value or Rs 75,000, whichever is less, the release said.

    In case of a partially damaged small sized boat, the compensation would be 50 per cent of the boat value or Rs 35,000, whichever is less, it said.

    For a fully damaged trawler, the compensation would be Rs 5 lakh or 50 per cent of the trawler’s value, it added.

    The state government will give Rs 2,000 through direct benefit transfer to all those fishermen whose boats were fully or partially damaged in the cyclone.

    On a loan of Rs 10 lakh to repair a fully damaged boat, the state government would bear 10 per cent of the interest for a period of two years, said the release.

    Under the package, the state government has also planned to restore the marine infrastructure which was damaged in the cyclone.

    In Jafrabad, the existing jetty would be extended up to 500 metres, and the high mast electricity towers at the jetty will also be repaired, the release said.

    Similar restoration work will be carried out in the coastal towns of Nava Bandar and Saiyad Rajpara, and Shiyal Bet island.

    In all, the state government would spend Rs 80 crore for restoring and strengthening the marine infrastructure, the release said.

  • India faced 117 cyclones from 1970-2019, over 40,000 lives lost: Study

    The research paper published earlier this year has been authored by M Rajeevan, Secretary of Ministry of Earth Sciences, along with scientists Kamaljit Ray, S S Ray, R K Giri and A P Dimri.

  • Gujarat government announces Rs 500-crore relief package for farmers affected by cyclone Tauktae

    By PTI
    AHMEDABAD: Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani on Wednesday announced a relief package of Rs 500 crore for farmers who lost their horticulture and summer crops due to cyclone Tauktae which ravaged the coastal parts of the state last week.

    One of the most powerful cyclones to hit the western coast in recent times, Tauktae, which made a landfall on the Gujarat coast on May 17 and triggered high-speed winds and rainfall, had destroyed crops in 2 lakh hectares in 86 talukas spread across nine districts of the state, as per official estimates.

    “Cyclone Tauktae, which triggered wind speed up to 220 kmph, had destroyed crops in Amreli, Gir Somnath, Bhavnagar, Junagadh and Botad districts of the Saurashtra region. It had also affected crops in South Gujarat districts of Navsari, Surat, Valsad and Bharuch,” Rupani said after a core committee meeting held to decided on a relief package for the affected farmers.

    “Horticulture and summer crops were destroyed in 2 lakh hectares in 86 talukas of these nine districts. The government had initiated a survey (for damage assessment) which will be completed by Thursday,” he said.

    Under the Rs 500 crore package, the state government has decided to give a financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh per hectare (up to to 2 hectares) to horticulture farmers whose plants have been completely uprooted.

    If the damage is over 33 per cent, Rs 30,000 per hectare will be given to such farmers for 2 hectares, Rupani said.

    The main horticulture crops that have faced destruction in the cyclone are mango, chikoo, lemon, coconut and guava.

    For summer crops, farmers who have faced damage of more than 33 per cent will be paid a compensation of Rs 20,000 per hectare (up to 2 hectares), he said.

    The compensation amount will be directly credited into the bank account of beneficiary farmers a week after the survey is completed by May 27, the CM said.

  • ‘Tauktae’-hit to get compensation as per ‘Nisarga’ relief package: Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: People affected by cyclone ‘Tauktae’ in Maharashtra would get the compensation on the lines of the relief package prepared for the victims of the cyclone ‘Nisarga’ that had hit the coastal districts last June, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Tuesday.

    The chief minister on May 21 visited the affected areas in the coastal Konkan to take stock of the situation.

    During his tour, he had said that no genuine victim will be left out.

    As coastal areas in Maharashtra are not frequently affected by cyclonic storms, most of the rules and regulations are formed to assess such damage in plains.

    The state Cabinet had last year amended the rules to issue compensation for every damaged tree instead of per hectare acknowledging that coastal areas are hilly with very small landholding.

    The damage caused by the cyclone ‘Nisarga’ was estimated to be Rs 6,000 crore.

    Cyclone Tauktae, which brushed past coastal Maharashtra last week before making landfall in Gujarat, caused damage to houses, trees, and electricity infrastructure.

  • EXPLAINER | Why are cyclones more frequent in India this year?

    Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: A week after Cyclone Tauktae wreaked havoc in several states, the country is now bracing for second cyclonic storm in the Bay of Bengal and the credit for the cyclogenesis can be given to exceptionally warmer Indian seas this year, making atmospheric and ocean conditions favourable for frequent formation of cyclones and their rapid intensification, says experts.

    Threshold value for sea surface temperatures (SSTs) for the formation of cyclones is 28 degree Celsius. At present, SST over Bay of Bengal as well as Arabian Sea is around 31-32 degree Celsius. Rapid intensification is expected to continue to become much more frequent this century with continued climate change. One study found that intensification rates that happen once a century now could happen every 5-10 years by 2100.

    Dr Roxy Mathew Koll, Scientist, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Lead Author, IPCC Oceans and Cryosphere, said: “Similarity between Cyclone Yaas and Tauktae is that both are preceded by very high sea surface temperatures reaching 31-32 degree Celsius. These high temperatures were conducive for cyclone Tauktae to intensify into an extremely severe cyclone in a short time. Similarly, high temperatures are predicted to assist Yaas also for intensifying rapidly.”

    He further says that there is one difference. Tauktae spent several days in the Arabian Sea where it could draw the heat and moisture continuously, reaching peak intensity of more than 220 km/hr.

    ALSO READ | Cyclone Yaas: Odisha port issues ‘Signal 10’ danger warning ahead of landfall

    “In the case of Yaas, it has formed in the north Bay of Bengal, and the travel distance to landfall is shorter. As a result, it won’t get a long period over the ocean to blow up to the intensity of Tauktae. Here the common thread is that rising ocean temperatures in both the basins are assisting these cyclones in their rapid intensification process. Otherwise, we don’t see a significant increase in the number of cyclones over the Bay of Bengal as we see in the Arabian Sea,” he said.

    According to Mahesh Palawat, Meteorologist, Skymet Weather, the credit for the cyclogenesis can be given to climate change.

    Indian seas have been exceptionally warmer than usual this year, making atmospheric and ocean conditions favourable for frequent formation of cyclones and their rapid intensification. Rapid intensification is the key point to focus on, as it will have direct impact on rainfall, destruction in terms of floods and gusty winds and evacuation process, added Palawat.

    Mahesh Palawat added, “Although the intensity of Cyclone Yaas would be less than that of Tauktae but it would be quite strong in terms of Damage. At the time of landfall, Yaas is likely to give flooding rains along with sustained wind speed of 165-175 kmph gusting upto 185 kmph. Coastal Odisha, Gangetic West Bengal and Jharkhand are expected to be on red alert for widespread torrential rains and damaging winds.”

  • Cyclone Tauktae: Two more bodies of suspected barge, tugboat mishap victims washed ashore Gujarat, Daman coast

    By PTI
    VALSAD: Two more bodies, suspected to be of victims a barge and a tugboat that sank due to cyclone Tauktae, have been found at the Valsad coast in Gujarat and the neighbouring Union Territory of Daman, police said on Monday.

    This has taken the total number of such bodies recovered in the past few days to eight.

    Out of the two more bodies recovered, one was washed ashore at Magod Dungri in Valsad on Sunday.

    Before this, six bodies with life jackets were found from different places in the district in the last couple of days, the police said.

    Besides, police in neighbouring Daman said they recovered a body, clad in a uniform and life jacket, from the Kadaiya beach on Saturday.

    Prima facie, the body appears to be of a victim of barge P305 which sank last Monday, they said.

    The police further said one more body was found at a beach in Moti Daman area on Monday morning, but it does not seem to be of any victim of the barge or the tugboat ‘Varaprada’ which sank off the Mumbai coast due to cyclonic storm Tauktae.

    “We have shared the data of both the bodies and are awaiting confirmation. At least one of the bodies found on Saturday was clad in a uniform and life jacket, while the one found on Monday could be of a fisherman,” Daman Superintendent of Police Amit Sharma said.

    Out of seven bodies found so far in Valsad, two have been identified.

    One of them was a crew member of the tugboat ‘Varaprada’ that sank along with the barge last week, police said.

    Efforts were on to identify the other bodies, they said, adding that a case of accidental death was registered.

    Barge P-305, which housed personnel engaged in maintenance work of an offshore oil drilling platform of the state-run oil and gas major ONGC, sank on May 17 off the Mumbai coast after it went adrift due to the high-speed winds and huge tidal waves caused by cyclone Tauktae.

    The Navy on Monday said all the 274 personnel who were on board barge P305 and tugboat Varaprada have been accounted for with the recovery of 16 bodies along the Maharashtra and Gujarat coasts.

    “Eight bodies have been recovered along the coast in Raigad district of Maharashtra and another eight bodies washed ashore the Gujarat coast near Valsad,” a Navy spokesperson said.

  • INS Makar locates tugboat Varaprada, divers looking for bodies: Navy

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Navy ship INS Makar on Monday located tugboat Varaprada seven days after it went adrift in the Arabian Sea during Cyclone Tauktae fury, an official said.

    “Divers are trying to locate trapped Brave Nature’s Victims (bodies) if any,” a Navy spokesperson said.

    All the 274 personnel who were on board barge P305 that sank and tugboat Varaprada that went adrift during Cyclone Tauktae fury have been accounted for with the recovery of 16 bodies along Maharashtra and Gujarat coasts, the official said.

    “A total of 274 crew were reported missing on May 17 (261 from Barge P305 and 13 from Tug Varaprada). While 186 survivors from P305 and two from Varaprada were picked up at sea, 70 mortal remains (bodies) were recovered at sea by ships of Indian Navy and Coast Guard,” the Navy spokesperson said.

    “Eight bodies have been recovered along the coast in Raigad district of Maharashtra and another eight bodies washed ashore the Gujarat coast near Valsad,” he said.

    Thus all the 274 crew (261 on board P305 and 13 on board Varaprada) have been accounted for, he said.

    The final confirmation will be pending till the identification of all the bodies recovered is completed, he added.

    Rescue personnel had recovered 70 bodies, believed to be of P305 personnel, in the sea till Sunday.

    With 16 bodies washing ashore, the death toll in the tragedy at sea could rise to 86, another official said.

    As of now, the official death toll stands at 70 pending identification of the bodies washed ashore.

    INS Makar, a Navy survey catamaran equipped with side scan sonars, located the wreckage of P305 on Saturday in the vicinity of where it sank on May 17.

    The Navy had also deployed specialised diving teams to boost the search and rescue (SAR) operations.

    The SAR operations haven’t been call off yet, the spokesperson told PTI.

    The relatives of the victims will try to identify the deceased with the help of the belongings found on their bodies, like clothes, identity cards, batch number or birth marks, previous injury marks or tattoos.

    In case the bodies are not identified, DNA tests would be conducted, another official said.

    All the 440 persons on barges Gal Constructor and Support Station 3 (SS-3) and drillship Sagar Bhushan were brought ashore to safety recently.