Opposition parties urge Central govt to immediately declare cyclone Amphan a national calamity

Opposition parties on Friday urged the Central government to immediately declare cyclone Amphan as a national calamity and substantially help the states in facing the impact of this disaster.

A statement from the resolution passed at a meeting by 22 parties on the death and devastation caused by the cyclone, read: "We, the opposition parties extend our sympathy and support to the government and people of West Bengal and Odisha in meeting the impact of the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan."

"This meeting of leaders of opposition parties conveys its deepest condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives. We express our solidarity and sympathies with the pain of those who have suffered other losses," the resolution states.

"The country and its people are already in the midst of a grim struggle for survival combating the Covid- 19 pandemic. A natural calamity like Cyclone Amphan has come as a double blow, breaking the spirits of the people," it said adding that the people in both these states urgently need the support and solidarity of the governments and people of the country.

"Opposition parties therefore urge the Central government to immediately declare this as a national calamity and substantially help the states in facing the impact of this disaster," the statement read.

At this juncture, relief and rehabilitation should be the top-most priority. But the possibility of an outbreak of other diseases as a result of such calamity must also not be ignored.

"Henceforth, we the Opposition parties call upon the Central government to provide urgent help to our fellow citizens/countrymen," it added.

Besides Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, AK Antony, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Mallikarjun Kharge, KC Venugopal, and Ahmed Patel, leaders from several other parties like HD Devegowda (JDS), Mamata Banerjee, Derek O'Brien (AITC), Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel (NCP), Thiru Stalin (DMK), Udhav Bal Thackeray, Sanjay Raut (Shiv Sena), Sitaram Yechuri (CPI-M), Hemant Soren (JMM), D Raja (CPI), Shri Sharad Yadav (LJD), Dr Omar Abdullah (NC), Tejaswi Yadav, Manoj Jha (RJD), etc. attended the meeting via video conference.

( With inputs from ANI )