Orissa Cyclones

  

On the morning of October 29, 1999, a cyclone struck the coast of Orissa, in northeastern India on the Bay of Bengal. Winds of between 155 and 161 miles an hour, heavy rains and waves between 13 and 20 feet high accompanied the storm.  Orissa is home to 32 million people. This storm struck just 10 days after another cyclone hit Orissa on the evening of October 17. The first storm ripped across the Gopalpur coast, devastating the district of Ganjam, which was in the eye of the storm.

Map of cyclone path  |  Districts of Orissa state  |  Location of Orissa within India

Facts on Orissa
  • Orissa is located in the northeast of India. Its northern plateau slopes down to fertile green coastal plains on the Bay of Bengal. To the northeast lies the state of West Bengal, and its capital, Calcutta. About one-third of Orissa is covered with forests.
  • Orissa state has a population of nearly 32 million people.  Area of the State is just over 62,000 square miles.
  • The capital, Bhubaneshwar, is known as the "Temple City of India."
  • Orissa's economy is largely based on agriculture, which provides 80 percent of rural employment and more than half of the state's income. One-tenth of India's rice production comes from Orissa. Other major crops include pulses, oil seeds, jute, sugarcane, turmeric and coconut.

  • Orissa lies in the tropics. The average rainfall is about 59 inches a year. The temperature ranges from a high of 120 degrees in the summer to a low of 41 degrees in the winter.

Prime Minister's Relief Fund

Government of India and Embassy of India continue to receive a number of offers for contributions to the cyclone relief activities in Orissa, India. Those who wish to make voluntary contributions may do so by sending checks in dollars or rupees to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund.

Checks/Money Orders should be drawn in favor of "Prime Minister's Relief Fund" can be sent to any one of the following addresses.

Prime Minister's Relief Fund
Embassy of India
Attn: Head of Chancery
2107 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20008

(OR)

Prime Minister's Relief Fund
Prime Minister's Office
South Block, New Delhi 110011
India
Orissa Chief Minister's appeal for help

Orissa State has been ravaged by two consecutive cyclones and flood of unprecedented magnitude, unknown in recent memory. The severe cyclone of October 17-18,1999 off Gopalpur Coast of southern Orissa was followed by a more devastating super cyclone on October 29-30,1999. The super cyclone with the wind speed up to 300 Kms per hour accompanied by torrential rains, flood and high tidal wave caused wide spread devastation of both public and private properties rendered more than 1.5crore people homeless, with out food, shelter and water, besides causing loss of thousands of precious human life and lakhs of cattle population.

In most of the cyclone affected districts the human misery was compounded by the massive flood that followed the cyclone. This unprecedented national calamity requires mobilization of huge resources for relief, restoration, rehabilitation and reconstruction. The state's own resources will not suffice to undertake this gigantic task.

I here by appeal to all governmental and non-governmental bodies, national and international donor agencies, NGO's conscientious humanity across the globe to lend a helping hand to the distress people of Orissa at this hour of crisis, by contributing generously to the "CHIEF MINISTER'S RELIEF FUND, ORISSA".

The contribution may be remitted in the shape of check-draft or check. All donation and contribution to the Chief Minister relief fund enjoy 100% tax exemption under section 80G of the I.T. Act 1961.

Dr. Giridhar Gamang
Chief Minister of Orissa
November 9, 1999
Relief coordination contact information:

Shri RR Dash
Head of Chancery
Embassy of India
Washington, DC
(202) 939-7020

Air India has been advised to facilitate the airlifting of relief material donated by NGOs/NRIs in US from Chicago and New York to New Delhi free of cost. The material will be then be dispatched to Orissa.

For further information contact:

New York
Consulate General of India
3 East, 64th Street, New York NY 10021
Tel:  (212) 774-0600
Fax: (212) 861-3788
Email: indcprny@aol.com

Chicago
Consul General
Consulate General of India
455 N. Cityfront Plaza Drive, Suite 850
Chicago, IL 60611
Tel:  (312) 595-0405
Fax: (312) 595-0416/18
Email: info@indianconsulate.com

Shri Bhagat Singh
Central Relief Commissioner
Ministry of Agriculture
Tel: 91-11-338-3977
Fax: 91-11-338-4555

Office of the Principal Resident Commissioner - Orissa
New Delhi
Tel: 91-11-3019771; 3018498; 3792002
Fax: 91-11-3010839

Special Relief Commissioner - Orissa
Bhubaneswar
Tel: 91-674-40152 & 91-674-403832
Fax: 91-674-400161 & 91-671-603346

Orissa Disaster Mitigation Mission

A group of non-governmental organizations and volunteers have created a Orissa Disaster Mitigation Mission (ODMM) to facilitate non-governmental efforts to carry on the mission of relief and livelihood restoration for all the cyclone affected areas.

ORISSA DISASTER MITIGATION MISSION
Control Room
DRTC, (Near XIM, B Square, CYSD)
Bhubaneswar, Orissa
Tel: 91- 674- 582377; 91- 674- 582983
Relief efforts by non-governmental organizations

National Council of Asian Indian Associations (NCAIA)

NCAIA has set up a cyclone relief fund for the victims in Orissa.  NCAIA is a registered nonprofit, tax-exempt organization located in Maryland, USA. Click here to make a secure online tax deductible contribution.

NCAIA
9326 Lanham Severn Rd, Lanham, MD 20706
Anadi Naik Tel: (410) 442-2539; S. N. Gupta (301) 294-9550; Shreekanta Nayak Tel: (301) 306-1995, Fax: (301) 459-0949

India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF)

IDRF has set up an Orissa Cyclone Relief Fund. Donations to IDRF are tax exempted in United States (Tax exempt ID: 52-1555563), and a receipt will be mailed to donors.  Make checks payable to IDRF, and mail it to the following address:

IDRF
1580 Hollenbeck Ave., Apt #4
Sunnyvale, CA-94087 USA.

In the memo, please mention Orissa Cyclone Relief. For more information contact:  Dr. Vinod Prakash (301) 984-2127

CRY (Child Relief and You, Inc.)

CRY has set up an Orissa Disaster Relief Program for the victims in Orissa. CRY is a registered nonprofit, tax-exempt organization located in New Jersey and is associated with CRY India. Click here to make secure online donation or send checks to CRY with memo as " Orissa Relief"

CRY Inc.
PO Box 372, Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922-0372
Tel: (877) 233-2222

CARE

CARE has set up a Orissa Emergency fund. Donors can make a secure online donation to CARE.

CARE
151 Ellis Street, Atlanta Georgia 30303-2426
Tel: 800-422-7385 Fax: 404-577-5977

American Red Cross

The American Red Cross has established a fund for the India cyclone victims. Donors wishing to designate their gifts to India should make checks payable to the American Red Cross--International Response Fund and earmarked for India Cyclone Relief in the memo section of the check or an accompanying letter, should specify India Cyclone Relief.

A secure online credit card donation services or you may send your donation to your local Red Cross or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013.
Information on cyclone damage and relief efforts
  • Loss of human life - 9615
  • Population affected - 12 million
  • Cattle deaths - 400,000
  • Number of villages affected - 7,921
  • Damaged houses - 800,000
  • Agricultural area damaged - 1.67 million hectares
  • 400 villages are still inaccessible

The relief efforts are now focused on checking the outbreak of epidemics and environmental pollution. To meet this goal, the following steps have been taken:

  1. Disease surveillance has been intensified.

  2. Synthetic pyrethroid spray may be used in the affected areas to minimize the potential risk of malaria outbreak.

  3. Malaria treatment/Drug distribution centers have been setup.

  4. Measles vaccination to all children less than 5 years old.

  5. Surveillance of enteric fever have been initiated.

  6. Guidelines have been issued to State health authorities for management of post trauma stress syndrome.

  7. 80% of wells that supply drinking water have been disinfected.

The army has cleared the roads connecting Bhubaneshwar, the capital city, to other major cities in Orissa.  Food and medical supplies are received from all parts of the country as road and rail traffic have been partially restored. Telecommunications have been partially restored (Puri, Dhenkanal, Balasore and Baripada - 100%, Bhubaneswar - 78.5%, Cuttack-73%, Bhadrak 98%, Khurda 97%, Jajpur -50%, Jagatsinghpur 24%, Kendrapara 34% & Paradip 28%).

The Prime Minister visited the cyclone hit areas twice and assured the State of all possible assistance.

Many voluntary organizations are offering to help the state agencies in distributing relief material (list of organizations involved in relief activities).