16,000 ha of crops destroyed, Jajpur: Fani

Jajpur: According to the district emergency cell, about 21,92,630 people of 1865 villages under 311 panchayats including 44 wards under two municipal areas in Jajpur district were affected by the storm.The district was impacted by the devastating cyclonic storm Fani. The gale started at 1 pm Friday causing severe devastations.

Failure of the district administration to provide essential relief and polythene sheets caused serious resentment among people.Dharna in front of Darpan tehsil office by cyclone-affected people of Dhanamandal panchayat under Badachana block was seen Tuesday.Although District Collector Ranjan Kumar Das directed revenue inspectors concerned to prepare comprehensive reports of impact assessment and cyclone losses, people are upset for the inertia of local administration. The Collector ordered speeding up of relief operations in Jajpur district as there are thousands of cyclone affected people in the region.As a disaster preparedness measure, 96,156 people were evacuated to 625 cyclone shelters. Along with safe accommodation, they were provided dry as well as cooked foods.It was learnt from the district administration that during the impact of the very severe cyclonic storm Fani, four people died due to falling of trees over them. Two others from Korei and Jenapur died due to Fani. About 72 people have been badly injured by the cyclone.

9,01,816 livestock of the district were affected and 6,843 birds and animals have died. 12 cows and buffalos and eight goats and sheep died due to the cyclonic impact. Similarly, 6,823 broiler birds also died in the district.Fani destroyed 16,228 hectares of crops and about 43,578 houses. Cyclone-affected people have been distributed polythene sheets, based on a ground report of revenue inspectors. It was learnt that, 3,210 kutcha houses were completely smashed.Power transmission infrastructure in the district was ruined. It was learnt that, even five days after Fani, only 30 per cent of the area got electricity supply.People of Dharmasala, Bari, Dasarathpur and Binjharpur are still under darkness and are suffering from severe heat and humidity. According to Superintendent of NESCO, there are 2,80,000 electricity consumers in Jajpur.Some 3,000 electric utility towers and 200 power transformers were damaged in the cyclonic storm and the total loss due to damage to infrastructure was Rs 24 crore. However, 35 contractors have been engaged in the restoration work and power supply will be normalised in all parts of this district within 2-3 days, official sources said.District Supply Officer said, 54,624 quintals of rice are being distributed to cyclone affected people for three days. District Collector himself is directly supervising the relief operations.