Cyclone Bulbul: Electricity, water supply expected to be restored by Nov 12 in Odisha

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], Nov 10 (ANI): Electricity and piped water supply in Odisha, which was affected by severe cyclone Bulbul, are expected to be completely restored in several districts of Odisha by November 12, Office of the Special Relief Commissioner said on Sunday.
According to the Special Relief Commissioner, out of total nearly 16 lakh electricity consumers affected due to the cyclone six affected districts, the supply has since been restored to 15 lakh consumers (94 per cent).
"As far as the power supply is concerned about 16 lakh consumers were affected out of which power supply has been restored for 15 lakh. The rest, about 1 lakh will get the supply back by Tuesday evening," said Special Relief Commissioner, PK Jena.
"As many as 653 Piped Water Supply (PWS) systems had suffered a break down in the districts of Bhardak, Balasore and Kendrapada due to electricity disruption, out of which, 174 PWS have been restored after electricity restoration," Office of the Special Relief Commissioner said in a statement.
It said that the restoration of electricity and PWS are expected to be completed by November 12. Drinking water is being supplied in the remaining affected areas through water tankers in the meantime.
The statement said that five districts in the state -- Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Bhadrak, Balasore and Mayurbhanj were most affected by the cyclone while Jajpur was also affected to some extent.
"As per preliminary estimation, nearly 3 lakh hectare of crop area including horticulture crops have been affected out of which about 2 Lakh hectare have suffered crop loss to the extent of 33 per cent and above," it said.
A detailed enquiry of crop damage by the joint teams comprising of Agriculture and Revenue Department officials is expected to be completed within a week.
"As many as 8,218 persons were evacuated in five districts namely Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Bhadrak, Balasore and Mayurbhanj districts and placed in 91 shelters. All of them have in the meantime returned to their home," the statement said.
About 5,500 houses have been damaged due to cyclone as per the initial report, but a detailed assessment of the damage is expected to be completed within a week.
"Road clearance is complete in all the affected districts. National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) and Fire Service teams substantially assisted in cutting down the fallen trees and clearing the roads," it said.
Meanwhile, eight people have died in West Bengal due to the cyclone.
Cyclone Bulbul was last reported at the northwestern parts of the country and was seen moving towards the northeastwards region. It was also reported that Bulbul has weakened due to precipitation and has reduced into a deep depression. (ANI)