Cyclone Kyarr:'Diwali' celebrations may be badly hit in North Karnataka

Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday warned that Cyclone 'Kyarr' is likely to intensify and the intensity of rain may be heavy in the next 24 hours, especially in the coastal Districts of Karnataka.

The most affected were Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada Districts. Many trees have been uprooted due to heavy rain accompanied with gusty winds. Normal life is thrown out of gear and many villages are under darkness as electric polls in many places have fallen on the ground severely disrupting the power supply.

Authorities have sounded red alert in Udupi, Dakshin Kannada and Uttara Kannada districts. These districts are likely to receive heavy rainfall during in the next 24 hours.

Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the rough sea for the next two days.

While late entry of South West Monsoon rain and floods had claimed 91 lives in Karnataka during August and September, revival of rain under Cyclone Kyarr has claimed 13 lives in the State so far. All the major rivers including Krishna, Ghataprabha, Malaprabha, Doodganga are overflowing as rains continued to lash since last one week in the catchment areas also due to heavy discharge

from major Reservoirs in Maharashtra.

Authorities have declared holiday for Educational Institutions. Hundreds of houses were either damaged or collapsed due to rain. Standing crops in hundreds of acres of land were marooned with rain water. Road connectivity between villages and towns were badly affected as culverts, bridges are submerged and authorities have banned vehicular movement.

The State government has geared up to meet the challenge and Deputy Commissioners of concerned districts have been asked to rush to the rescue and rehabilitation of the affected people and live stocks.

Several Ministers are on tour of the affected Districts to oversee the relief measures and to listen to the problems of the affected.

Image: UNI