Indian Navy fully ready to tackle Cyclone Hudhud

Rescue teams of the Indian Navy have been prepared for immediate deployment in anticipation of Cyclone Hudhud, which is expected to have a landfall on Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

"Considerable effort has been made to mobilize all the resources. The navy is fully ready. In addition, there is an NDRF team which has come. There is an army team of 200 personnel from Hyderabad, which are all being coordinated with the district administration. The navy will provide relief at the first opportunity to mitigate the ill-effects of the disaster," Rear Admiral Ajendra B Singh told ANI.

"Ships of the eastern fleet are ready for encountering the ill-effects of Cyclone Hudhud. Four ships, as of now, have been fully loaded and are prepared. Other ships have also been placed at short notice, to provide whatever assistance is required," he added.

The National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) held a meeting in the national capital today under the chairmanship of Cabinet Secretary Ajit Seth and reviewed the preparedness for relief and rescue operations in the wake of the cyclonic storm 'Hudhud' advancing towards the coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.

Officials in the two states said they had set up 24-hour emergency control rooms and cancelled the leave of civil servants working in high-risk areas. Nine of Andhra Pradesh's 13 districts and 16 of Odisha's 30 districts are on alert.

Train services have been badly affected in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.