13 fishing boats from Palghar still in sea as cyclone Nisarga nears

This picture has been used for representational purposes

As Maharashtra prepares for the approaching cyclonic storm 'Nisarg', 13 boats of fishermen from Palghar are still out in the sea and efforts are being made to get them back to the shore quickly, authorities said on Tuesday. The Maharashtra government has already sounded an alert in Mumbai and neighbouring districts in view of the cyclonic storm 'Nisarg', which is expected to hit the state's coast on Wednesday. As many as 577 fishing boats from Palghar had earlier gone out in the sea and till Monday evening, 477 returned, Collector Kailas Shinde said. Efforts were made to bring the remaining 100 also back to the shore. "Now, only 13 boats were left out in the sea," Shinde said.

The number of fishermen on these boats was not known. The district administration is taking help of the Coast Guard and officials of the fisheries department to get the remaining boats back, Palghar's disaster management cell chief Vivekanand Kadam said. The Vasai, Dahanu and Palghar talukas, dominated by fisherfolk, have been put on an alert and those living near the coast in 'kutcha' houses are being evacuated and lodged in safer places as a precautionary measure, Shinde said. Power supply in these areas may be shut during the cyclone if the need arises, he said. The collector has also issued a list of do's and don'ts for the public during the cyclone. In the neighbouring Thane district also, a company of NDRF arrived on Monday and has been stationed at Uttan, where maximum members of the fishermen community live, Collector Rajesh Narvekar said. He has also asked fishermen not to venture out in the sea. District disaster control officer Anita Jawanjal said no fishing boat from Thane is left out in the sea.

"All the 252 boats which had gone out for fishing returned by Monday evening," she said. Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray through video conference on Monday and took stock of the state's preparedness to tackle any eventuality. Ten units of the NDRF have been deployed in vulnerable districts, while six others have been kept on a stand-by, officials said. Steps are being taken to ensure there is no disruption of power supply at a time when the state is battling the coronavirus crisis and thousands of patients are undergoing treatment in various hospitals, they said. Adequate precautions are being taken to safeguard chemical and atomic energy plants located in coastal Palghar and Raigad districts. Thackeray in a statement earlier said an alert has been sounded in Mumbai city, Mumbai suburban district, Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts in view of the cyclonic storm developing in the Arabian Sea.

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