Tourists stranded in Andaman's Havelock Island are safe: Rajnath

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday that all the tourists stranded in Havelock Island were safe and the government has made all preparations to evacuate them.

Rajnath also spoke to Lt. Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Jagdish Mukhi and was apprised of the situation in Havelock Islands.

"Spoke to Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jagdish Mukhi who apprised me of the situation in Havelock Islands," Rajnath said in a series of tweets.

"All the tourists who are stranded in Havelock Island are safe. The government has made all the preparations to evacuate them," he added in another tweet.

The Home Minister also said that government will launch the rescue operations immediately after the intensity of the cyclone reduces.

"The teams are ready in Port Blair," he said.

Rajnath also to the family members of stranded tourists that they should not panic as everyone in the Havelock Islands are reported to be safe.

Four ships of the Indian Navy were sailed on Wednesday morning to evacuate about 800 tourists from Havelock Island in Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) Islands.

The sudden evacuation mission was initiated at the request of the A&N disaster management, which speculates that a "cyclonic storm" might struck Havelock, an island about 36 km from capital Port Blair.

--IANS

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