Gandhinagar: In the wake of cyclonic storm Maha in Arabian sea, almost all of the more than 12000 fishing boats which had ventured in to the sea along Gujarat coast for fishing have returned.

Additional Chief Secretary of the Revenue Department of Gujarat government Pankaj Kumar today informed.

He said that around 12600 boats had gone in to the sea and almost 12000 have returned so far and the remaining were also likely to come back by today evening.

He said that there was no need to panic about the cyclonic storm which was likely to make a landfall between Diu and Porbandar in the early morning of November 7, as the state government was fully prepared and acting as per the latest forecasts of the met department.

Kumar said that the first priority was being given to bring back all the fishermen/boats from the sea which was likely to turn very rough in the coming times.

He said that there were 15 NDRF teams in the state and as many were coming from outside for possible rescue and relief operations. The state officials including the Chief Secretary had talked to the union cabinet secretary through video conferencing. The CS is also going to hold a meeting with all the collectors and other officials of the concerned districts this evening.

Kumar said that people should keep doing their daily chores as usual and not panic at all.

DeshGujarat