Cyclone Tauktae: Cabinet Minister Bavaliya visits Amreli to take stock of preparedness

Cabinet Minister Kunvarjibhai Bavaliya visited Amreli district on Monday to inspect the preparedness for Cyclone Tauktae in the region.

The cyclone has intensified into a severe cyclonic storm over the East-central Arabian Sea and has moved North-Northwestwards with a speed of about 20 km per hour in the early hours, and further intensified into an "extremely severe cyclonic storm on Monday, informed the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

Thousands of people were evacuated from low-lying areas along its western coast as a powerful Cyclone Tauktae is expected to make landfall in the state of Gujarat.

IMD DG Mrutyunjay Mohapatra informed that cyclone Tauktae is very likely to cross the Gujarat coast between Porbandar and Mahuva in Bhavnagar district around the early morning of May 18.

He further said that heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected to occur in coastal areas of Gujarat on May 18. Meanwhile, some places may experience extremely heavy rainfall.

( With inputs from ANI )