Jalpaiguri, April 1 -- Sunday's tornado has left a trail of death and destruction in Jalpaiguri district. Even the elderly persons who were an eyewitness of the tornado claimed that they had never witnessed anything like this in their lifetime. Four persons have been killed and around 300 injured in the storm. Besides, more than 1,000 houses have been razed to the ground.
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued weather warnings for the North Bengal districts for the next two days. Governor C V Ananda Bose and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited the affected areas on Monday. The deceased include Anima Mandal (49) of Paharpur Gram Panchayat (GP), Dwijendra Narayan Sarkar (52) of Sen Para, Jalpaiguri, Jogen Rai (54) of Barnish GP and Samar Roy (64) of Rajar Haat under Barnish GP.
With news of the calamity, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had rushed to Jalpaiguri on Sunday night where she paid a visit to the family of the deceased Bijendra Narayan Sarkar. She also met the family members of the injured at Jalpaiguri Super Speciality Hospital around midnight. Following this, the Chief Minister visited the relief camps in Maynaguri Block where the Barnish and Putimari Gram Panchayats are the worst affected. "You should not stay out in the open. Stay in the relief camps. Do not worry. We are with you. The district administration will take care of all your problems," assured the Chief Minister. After spending the night at a private resort in Chalsa, on Monday, she visited the storm-affected areas of the Alipurduar district.
On reaching Jalpaiguri, the Governor interacted with the affected people and inquired about whether they were receiving necessary help and relief from the district administration. "The situation is now under control. Treatment is being provided. The people who are grievously injured are being treated," remarked the Governor. Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari also visited the affected areas.
"Surveys are going on to assess the damage. Around 400 people were lodged in the two shelter homes. In the morning, they went back home but we have appealed to them to stay in the shelter homes at least at night. All relief material, medical kits and tarpaulin sheets have been distributed," stated Prasanjit Kundu, BDO, Maynaguri. "About 40 persons are admitted with injuries in the Super Speciality Hospital. Their condition is reported to be stable. We have referred one person to the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital," stated Ashim Haldar, Chief Medical Officer of Health, Jalpaiguri.
The affected areas presented the picture of a war torn zone, with flattened areas across large stretches which were once villages. People went about looking for their belongings. Trees and electric poles lay strewn all over causing roadblocks. Work is on to restore drinking water and electricity connections. Civil Defence, NDRF have been pressed into service.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.