We were prepared... no major damage due to Fani: Mamata

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who stayed back at Kharagpur and monitored the situation said on Saturday morning that preventive measures taken by the state administration have ensured that there was not much damage due to cyclone Fani. There was no report of any casualty or major injury across the state.

"We took all possible precautionary measures as soon as there was forecast of the cyclonic storm. I was worried for the last one week. We have been constantly monitoring the situation," Banerjee said.

Assuring all possible assistance to those who have lost their houses due to the cyclone, she added that 42,000 people have been evacuated by the administration.

"They will return to their homes in one or two days," she added.

Banerjee said that over 800 houses have been partially affected with a number of electric poles being uprooted, trees have fallen and roads have been affected. "12 kachcha houses collapsed. All restoration work will be taken care of. We have already removed the trees and roads have been cleared in most of the areas," she assured.

The Chief Minister further maintained that restoration work is complete in Digha, Mandarmani, Diamond Harbour and going on in full swing in other areas. "Electricity has been restored in most places. In the next two days, situation will be normal," she asserted.

A senior official of the Regional Meteorological Centre, Alipore, said that Fani that was in Ranaghat in Nadia district at around 9 am in the morning that moved further north-northeastwards and entered Bangladesh around noon as a deep depression developed with wind speed of 50-60 kmph, gusting to 70 kmph.

Deputy Director General of Alipore weather office Sanjib Bandyopadhyay admitted that though the department had predicted the right path for cyclone Fani during its entry in Bengal, it was not fully correct while predicting its wind speed.