that Cyclone Mandaus, which made its landfall near MamallapuramThe people of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have got a big relief as there was not much damage due to rain near Chennai in the early hours of Saturday. At one stage, it was expected to develop into a “severe cyclonic storm”, but did not gain much strength. Called a “textbook cyclone”, the storm, as predicted by the India Meteorological Department, crossed the coast with all the attendant features, to the satisfaction of professional meteorologists. Although Cyclone Mandaus was similar to Cyclone Vardah that made landfall in Chennai in mid-December 2016, this event dumped heavy rainfall which was much more than the rainfall received under Vardah. This time, not only parts of northern Tamil Nadu but also areas of neighboring Andhra Pradesh received heavy rainfall. For instance, Vembakkam in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruvannamalai district and Srikalahasti in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati district recorded 25 cm and 23 cm of rain, respectively, during the 24-hour period that ended at 8.30 am on Saturday. But more remarkable was the way the official machinery in Tamil Nadu handled the disaster management system. Despite the cyclone crossing the coast around midnight and uprooting many trees and structures, the response of the administration was swift and life of the common man was hardly disrupted. Five lives were lost, which is very low compared to disasters of similar magnitude.
After facing criticism in November 2021, and later, when Chennai and its surrounding areas were flooded following heavy rains, the Tamil Nadu government is this time focusing more on improving storm-water drainage networks and other such works . Although many areas were saved from flooding, one of the reasons that the main parts of the city did not receive as much rain as the interior parts of northern Tamil Nadu, the state government’s coordination with the Meteorological Department and preparedness to deal with it. The situation after landfall made all the difference this time. Otherwise, like before, the citizens would have been in trouble even in light rain. Technology has also been playing an important role, both in terms of forecasting and information dissemination. The authorities, i.e., the State Government and the Meteorological Department should continuously work to improve their methods of functioning, use technology, and prepare the people to face such natural calamity or even bigger natural calamity. Need help living. Ideally, the official machinery should aim to ensure that there is no loss of life. Given the availability of empirical data, both hardware and software resources on cyclones and severe cyclones crossing the Tamil Nadu coast, such a task would not be impossible.