Heatwave to cyclone, PM Modi holds series of meetings

“Prime Minister has instructed that proper drills for preventing and handling incidents of fire must be done on a regular basis. Fire audit and electrical safety audit of hospitals and other public places must be undertaken regularly. He also said that regular drills for the maintenance of fire-line in forests and productive utilisation of the biomass must be planned,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement.

“The PM was informed about the usefulness of the ‘van agni’ portal in timely identification of forest fires and its management,” the statement said.

According to the statement, Modi was briefed that as per the IMD forecast, the heatwave is likely to continue in parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. “This year, the monsoon is likely to be normal and above normal in most parts of the country and below normal in parts of peninsular India,” the statement said.

This meeting was attended by the Principal Secretary to PM P K Mishra, Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba, Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, and top officials from the Ministry of Earth Sciences, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Senior officials from the PMO and the ministries concerned were also present.

At a separate meeting to review the impact of Cyclone Remal, “the loss of human lives and damage to houses and properties due to landslides and floods in Mizoram, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura was discussed,” the PMO said. “NDRF teams have been deployed as per the needs. The teams have carried out evacuation, airlifting and road clearance operations. During the meeting, it was mentioned that the Ministry of Home Affairs is in regular touch with the state governments,” it said.

“The PM said that the Government of India will continue to extend full support to the state affected by the cyclone. The PM also instructed the Ministry of Home Affairs to monitor the situation and review the matter regularly to extend necessary assistance for restoration,” the statement said.

According to the statement, the meeting was attended by the Principal Secretary to PM, Cabinet Secretary, Home Secretary, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, DG NDRF and Member Secretary, NDMA.

Earlier in the day, sources said Modi would hold seven meetings on Sunday, including a “long brainstorming session to review the agenda” for the first 100 days of the new government. He is also set to hold a meeting to review the preparations to celebrate World Environment Day on June 5.

Modi’s day-long meetings came a day after he completed his 45-hour meditation at Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari.

On Saturday, all major exit polls projected that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would retain power with a resounding victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The BJP and its allies are expected to breach the 300-seat mark once again.