HOURS BEFORE Cyclone Biparjoy made landfall in Gujarat, the town of Devbhumi Dwarka came to a standstill on Thursday morning with shops and establishments in the town closing down as a precautionary measure. Officials of the Fire and Emergency services of the town shifted street-dwellers to safer locations. Gujarat Minister of State for Home, Harsh Sanghvi, who is stationed in Dwarka, supervised the evacuation of people from low-lying areas and also visited the Sanatan Seva Ashram where an Army unit of 78 personnel has been moved in from Jamnagar to assist in the rescue and relief operations. Sanghvi also visited shelters in Gandhvi and met the residents, who have been evacuated from the low-lying areas. Dwarka town witnessed a near-total shutdown on Thursday, with fire officials evacuating street-dwellers from Gomti Ghat to shift them to safer locations. Fire officer Jitendra Karadiya of the Dwarka Municipality, told this newspaper, “A total of 60 persons have been evacuated and shifted to camps, where arrangements have been made for meals and accommodation. Mainly, women, children and senior citizens have been shifted from the ghat areas as the river is swelling.”
