Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday departed for West Bengal to undertake an aerial survey of Cyclone Amphan hit areas. He will also visit Odisha later today. Besides conducting aerial surveys, the Prime Minister will take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s last visit was to Prayagraj and Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh on February 29. He will be going on a tour after 83 days. On Thursday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that Rs 1,000 crore fund has been created for restoration work for areas affected in cyclone Amphan, which has claimed lives of 72 people in the state. She had also urged the Prime Minister to visit the state. West Bengal has announced a compensation of Rs 2.5 lakh to the families of the deceased. Meanwhile, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) Director General SN Pradhan on Thursday said that a team of Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will visit Odisha and West Bengal to evaluate the damages done by cyclone Amphan. The extremely severe cyclonic storm Amphan moved north-northeastwards and crossed West Bengal-Bangladesh coasts between Digha (West Bengal) and Hatiya (Bangladesh) near Sundarbans on Wednesday afternoon as a very severe cyclonic storm with a wind speed of 155-165 kmph gusting to 185 kmph.
