Representative imageThiruvananthapuram: A controversy has erupted over charges that no advance warning was issued in Kerala about the impending Cyclone Ockhi.
Dozens of fishermen were marooned in the sea after Cyclone Ockhi battered the Kerala coast Thursday. Fishermen had ventured out to the sea as usual Thursday morning, without realizing that a storm was looming large over the western coast. With nearly 270 of their folks missing as of Friday morning, fishermen insist there was no warning about the possibility of cyclone or heavy rain or huge waves.
Experts do not deny the charges, but offer the lame excuse that it was not practically possible to issue such a warning. They point out that a low pressure off Lakshadweep intensified into a cyclone around 11 am. They argue that the low pressure is a common occurrence and rarely develops into a cyclone. Hence, they didn't consider it necessary to issue a cyclone warning.
The experts said initial indications suggested that the storm could hit areas up to Kanyakumari only, beyond the borders of Kerala.
At the same time, it was pointed out a clear failure on the part of the authorities at a time when several countries have the technology to predict natural disasters in advance. They assert that they were caught in the storm, only because of the indifference of insensitive officials.
Low pressure is common along the Kerala coast from September to November, but this was the first time that it came so close to the shore. The low pressure intensified after reaching 120 kilometer south of Kanyakumari Tuesday night. The weather department says rain and the presence of Cyclone Ockhi could be confirmed only after that.
The authorities say that the cyclone will not make a landfall even though it is quite close to the shore.
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