Cyclone Gaja has passed. But its impact stays. The after-effect of the severe storm has unsettled the daily lives of a large number of residents of central districts of Tamilnadu, especially Nagapattinam. Though relief works are on in full swing, people in some parts say this is not enough and more needs to be done on a war-footing to restore normalcy. There are media reports and social media posts that power supply, telecommunication and other essential things are yet to be restored. After the cyclone made landfall 15 November, electricity supply was disrupted in the district affecting the day-to-day activities of people. A large number of people could also be seen queuing at fuel stations.
Claiming that the toll in cyclone Gaja has touched 45, Chief Minister K Palaniswami has appealed to leaders of all political parties to take part in the relief activities. He said the relief operations were going on on a war-footing in the districts affected by the cyclonic storm and Ministers have been deployed in Nagapattinam, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, and Pudukottai to monitor it. The State government is collecting details about areas which have been badly affected by the cyclone, he added.
In villages, lots of trees and standing crops have been damaged, affecting the livelihood of farmers. Thousands of animals had died. Even according to a government estimate, 1.7 lakh trees have been uprooted, 735 cattle died, 1.17 lakh houses damaged and 88,102 hectare agricultural land has been affected in the coastal districts. This is an hour of crisis and it is time everyone of us stood united in wiping the tears of people affected by the cyclone. When Chennai suffered from floods in 2015 and Vardah cyclone in 2016, people from various parts of Tamilnadu rushed to help it. It is now time for Chennaiites, its businessmen and cinema personalities to respond.