Amphan: Official updates from West Bengal Government

These government updates were received through our partners on the ground. Here is an online link.

Details of the damage caused by cyclone Amphan – Govt. of West Bengal (28-05-2020)

• People: Six crore (60 million) affected; 87 dead; 8.13 lakh (0.83 million) evacuated; 2 lakh still in relief camps.
• Homes: 10 lakh (1 million) dwellings damaged. The state will release Rs 20,000 for each damaged dwelling.
• Drinking water: Some 1,231 water supply projects, out of 1,746, are damaged. Saline water has submerged many villages.
• Electricity: A total of 4.5 lakh electricity poles were uprooted or damaged. Many rural areas are still under water. Until the water recedes, poles cannot be erected.
• Embankments: Some 160km of river embankments, mainly those along the Raimangal, Matla (South-24 Parganas), Bidyadhari (N-24), Muriganga and Hatania-Doania (S-24), have been breached. Several embankments in Kultali, Hingalganj and Patharpratima (S-24) have become weak and could be breached during high tide.
• Agriculture: Some 10.5 lakh hectares of farmland and about 1 lakh betel leaf farms are affected.
• Roads: 317 km of PWD roads and 4,710 km of rural roads, along with 300 small bridges or culverts, are damaged.
• Buildings: About 1.1 lakh school buildings are damaged; so are 2,000 health centres and 4,200 ICDS centres.
• Other damage: Saline water has entered about 58,000 hectares of water bodies; 8,000 fishing boats are damaged; 9 lakh heads of cattle are dead.