Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘Montha’ Likely To Form Over Bay Of Bengal; AP Govt Issues Alert

The deep depression over the Bay of Bengal is intensifying and is likely to develop into a severe cyclonic storm, named “Montha,” by October 28. In view of the evolving situation, the Government of Andhra Pradesh has sounded a full alert across the state’s coastal and adjoining districts.

The system is currently located about 990 km southeast of Kakinada and is expected to cross the coast between Machilipatnam and Kakinada on the evening or night of October 28, according to the release.

To ensure prompt preparedness and effective response, the state government has appointed senior IAS officers as Special Officers for all coastal and adjoining districts to oversee relief and rehabilitation operations.

Chief Secretary K Vijayanand issued orders directing them to proceed immediately to their respective districts, establish Cyclone Control Rooms, and ensure seamless coordination with District Collectors.

As per the release, senior IAS officer RP Sisodia will act as the Zonal In-charge Officer for the coastal belt, overseeing preparedness in the West Godavari to Chittor districts. Another official, Ajay Jain, has been entrusted with the Visakhapatnam zone, covering Srikakulam to Konaseema districts, which are expected to experience strong winds and heavy rainfall during the cyclone’s landfall.

Other senior officers have been allotted to different districts to strengthen field-level coordination: KVN Chakradhara Babu (Srikakulam), Pattanshetti Ravi Subash (Vizianagaram), Narayana Bharath Gupta (Manyam), Vadarevu Vinay Chand (ASR), K. Kanna Babu (East Godavari), VR Krishna Teja (Kakinada), Vijaya Rama Raju (Konaseema), V Prasanna Venkatesh (West Godavari), Kantilal Dande (Eluru), Amrapali Kata (Krishna), Shashi Bhushan Kumar (NTR), M. Venu Gopal Reddy (Bapatla), Kona Sasidhar (Prakasam), Dr N Yuvaraj (Nellore), P Arun Babu (Tirupati), and PS Girisha (Chittoor).

As per the order, these officers will be responsible for coordinating rescue, relief, and restoration operations, ensuring last-mile delivery of essential services, enumerating losses, disbursing compensation, and facilitating restoration of normalcy in the aftermath of the cyclone.

Chief Secretary Vijayanand emphasised that all departments, including Revenue, Panchayat Raj, Energy, Roads and Buildings, Water Resources and Health, must work in close coordination under the supervision of the appointed Special Officers.

With experienced officers like RP Sisodia and Ajay Jain leading preparedness efforts, and a strong administrative team deployed across the coastal districts, the Andhra Pradesh government is fully geared to minimise the impact of Cyclone “Montha” and safeguard lives and property along the state’s coastline. (ANI)