Guwahati: Cyclone Biparjoy progressively decreased from a very severe cyclonic storm to a “depression” during the course of the last 24 hours, causing unusually heavy rainfall across North Gujarat.
Meanwhile, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw confirmed that the cyclone damaged railway rails at five different areas in Rajasthan. The Railways took prompt steps to divert passenger trains while attempts are being made to rebuild the rails on a military footing. Western Railways also announced the cancellation of more than a dozen trains due to the effects of the cyclone.
The minister in a tweet wrote, “Track breached at five places in Rajasthan due to #Biparjoy; Railways took timely action and diverted passenger trains. Work is going at war footing to restore the tracks.”
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issued warnings of heavy rainfall in several regions, including south Rajasthan, north Gujarat, West Bengal, Meghalaya, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, south interior Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, and Sikkim. Additionally, light to moderate rainfall is predicted in Gangetic West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
According to the IMD report, there is a strong possibility of heavy to extremely heavy rainfall in south Rajasthan, as well as sporadic heavy to very heavy precipitation in the neighbouring regions of north Gujarat and Kutch. Light to moderate precipitation is forecast for Northeast India, Sub-Himalayan West Bengal, and Sikkim, with sporadic extremely heavy precipitation in Meghalaya from June 17 to June 19.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah commended the Gujarat government for reporting no casualties from Cyclone Biparjoy, which made landfall on the Kutch coast with winds of 140 kph. He promised that electricity would be restored in the affected districts by June 20 during a visit to Bhuj, the district capital of Kutch. The government intends to examine the damage to crops, horticulture, and boats before announcing a relief package.
Furthermore, according to reports, Rajasthan had severe rainfall in a number of locations as the cyclone proceeded towards the arid state after making landfall in Gujarat. Rainfall totals in Sirohi were 37.5 mm, Jalore had 36 mm, Barmer had 33.6 mm, Bikaner had 26.6 mm, and Dabok had 13 mm.
The Meteorological Department issued a ‘Red Alert’ for Barmer, Jalore, and Sirohi, where moderate to heavy rainfall is expected to persist for 3 to 4 hours. ‘Orange Alerts’ were issued for Pali and Jodhpur, while a ‘Yellow Alert’ was announced for Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Churu, Sikar, Nagaur, Jhunjhunu, Ajmer, Udaipur, Rajsamand, Jaipur, Jaipur City, Dausa, Alwar, Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Karauli, Sawai Madhopur, Tonk, Bundi, and Kota.