While immediate and efficient state response, especially in evacuation efforts, managed to keep the number of casualties down to a large extent, the cyclone’s impact has been maximum on the fishermen communities living on the Visakhapatnam coast. Their boats are either lost or damaged and their means of livelihood is left in tatters. “The evacuation efforts of the Andhra Pradesh and Orissa governments were commendable. The emphasis should now be to reach out to the affected people and help them restore their livelihood,” said Sehjo Singh, Director, Programme and Policy at ActionAid India. More than five lakh fishermen families have been affected by the cyclone, officials estimated. Most of them are currently in relief camps. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has announced compensation of Rs 5,000 for nets and Rs 10,000 for boats for each of the families. However, the cost of replacement is estimated to be much higher. More than 10,000 boats have been lost or damaged, officials estimated. ActionAid India’s emergency response team has so far conducted a need assessment in 16 villages of Achyuthapuram, Vizag Urban and Bheemili in Andhra Pradesh. “The fishermen have lost their nets and boats. Many of them, who lived in tin-roofed or thatched houses, have lost their shelters. Children have lost their books and bags. Our efforts are to provide immediate relief to at least 7,000 families in these 16 villages,” said Raghu Kumar, Regional Manager, ActionAid India. “Right now a lot of attention is centred at Visakhapatnam. We have information that some of the tribal areas in Srikakulam are also severely affected and we have sent our teams there for assessing the damage. We will reach out to the most vulnerable belts and to the most vulnerable people on priority,” said Raghu. Although wind speed has slowed down, heavy rainfall continues to pose a hurdle in the efforts to deliver aid and assistance to the affected areas. In both Andhra Pradesh and Orissa, rising water levels in the major rivers are an additional cause of worry. The extent of damage to the region and cost of the same will be seen in the coming days, officials said. With railway tracks and roads damaged or blocked by debris, getting access to the most affected areas is proving to be difficult.
