Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday, November 4 called Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu and inquired about the impact of cyclones 'Arnab' and 'Murasu', IANS reported. The two cyclones struck the state within a single week, inflicting heavy losses on agriculture, roads and power infrastructure across multiple districts, according to an official release reported by Nation Press.

Source: IANS via DailyWorld

This follows the earlier development Awaaz Punjab reported on November 3, when Cyclone Murasu crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast and the state put its preliminary loss at about Rs 344 crore with two deaths. Wednesday's call is the Centre's first prime-ministerial engagement on the twin-cyclone damage, and it comes with a formal state request for Central money.

Source: Nation Press

According to the official release, Naidu briefed the Prime Minister on the full extent of the destruction. Cyclone Murasu alone caused a preliminary loss of Rs 343.95 crore across eight government departments, with approximately 94 per cent of that loss in the agricultural sector. Crops spanning 50,473 hectares across 465 villages in seven districts were damaged, affecting 69,828 farmers; 45,900 hectares of that was paddy, with the total preliminary agricultural loss estimated at Rs 324.22 crore. Bapatla, Krishna and Guntur suffered the most severe crop and horticultural damage, Nation Press reported.

Source: Nation Press

Prime Minister Modi acknowledged the state government's effective relief operations and praised Naidu for managing the back-to-back cyclone crises through constant vigilance, Nation Press reported. Ahead of landfall, the State Disaster Management Authority, the Real-Time Governance Society and emergency operations centres were on high alert, 11 SDRF and 13 NDRF teams were kept on standby, 480 schools in affected districts were converted into relief centres, and 12,230 people were evacuated to safer locations.

Source: Nation Press

What happens next: Naidu has also written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah urging the Centre to release immediate financial assistance, and Shah had separately called Naidu on Tuesday — twice in a single day — to assess the cumulative damage from both cyclones, Nation Press reported. As of November 4, the Centre's decision on releasing funds is awaited; Modi praised the state's relief efforts but no disbursement has been announced.

Source: Nation Press