Cyclone Gaja claims 20 lives in Tamil Nadu, Rajnath Singh assures assistance

Cyclonic storm Gaja has claimed 20 lives in Tamil Nadu before crossing the coastal state early on Friday, said Chief Minister K Palaniswami. Gaja crossed the coast between Nagapattinam and nearby Vedaranyam, bringing with it heavy rain, and causing severe damage to communication and power infrastructure, mainly in Nagapattinam district.

Speaking to reported in Salem, Palaniswami said relief work will be taken up on a war-footing and that the work was already underway.

The chief minister also announced that the families of those killed will be provided ac solatium of Rs 10 lakh each from the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund (CMPRF).

Those with severe injuries will be provided with Rs 1 lakh each, while people who had sustained simple injuries will get Rs 25,000 as relief, he added.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh also assured the Tamil Nadu government of all assistance to deal with the situation. He directed Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba to monitor the situation in Tamil Nadu and provide all help to the state administration.

"Spoke to CM Shri K Palaniswami regarding the situation in the cyclone affected areas of Tamil Nadu. Assured all possible assistance from the Centre in mitigating the situation arising due to cyclone. Asked the HS to monitor the situation & provide all help to the state admin (sic)," Singh tweeted.

More than 80,000 people were evacuated from low-lying areas as severe cyclonic storm 'Gaja' crossed the coast between Nagapattinam and nearby Vedaranyam early on Friday, bringing with it heavy rains in coastal regions.

MK Stalin lauds Tamil Nadu government  

MK Stalin, president of main opposition party DMK, on Friday lauded the Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management Authority for its efforts to tackle the severe cyclonic storm Gaja.

Stalin, who is the leader of the opposition said in a tweet, Tamil Nadu has been affected by a cyclone again and this time 'Gaja.'

"The way the @tnsdma (Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management Authority) took preparatory efforts (to tackle the cyclone) is praiseworthy," he said.

(With PTI inputs)

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