Severe Cyclone Montha made landfall near Narasapuram in Andhra Pradesh early Wednesday, leaving behind a trail of destruction across the coastal districts and impacting large parts of Telangana, including Hyderabad. The storm triggered heavy rains, strong winds, power outages, and large-scale crop damage, affecting thousands of families.
Andhra Pradesh Faces Cyclone Fury
The coastal belt of Andhra Pradesh was the worst hit as heavy rainfall pounded regions from Visakhapatnam to Tirupati. Hundreds of trees and electric poles were uprooted in East Godavari, Krishna, and Visakhapatnam districts, plunging many areas into darkness.
According to early estimates, standing crops such as paddy, cotton, maize, and green gram have been damaged across 4.4 lakh acres. In the Konaseema region, powerful winds flattened banana plantations and paddy fields.
As the cyclone crossed near Narsapuram, massive waves lashed the coast, while Ichchapuram town in Srikakulam was flooded after water from Bhagalati Dam in Odisha entered the Bahuda River, raising the inflow to 51,228 cusecs. A nearby Shiva temple was completely submerged.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu conducted an aerial survey of affected districts, including Bapatla, Palnadu, Krishna, Konaseema, and Eluru. The Andhra Pradesh government has announced relief measures, including free distribution of essential supplies to all cyclone-hit families — 50 kg rice for fishermen, 1 kg lentils, 1 liter oil, 1 kg onions, 1 kg potatoes, and 1 kg sugar per family.
Telangana and Hyderabad Hit by Heavy Rains
In Telangana, continuous rains caused flooding in several low-lying areas. In Nalgonda, students of a government Gurukul school were safely evacuated after floodwaters entered the premises. Train services were disrupted as water flooded the tracks at Dornakal Junction and Gundratimadugu, forcing the Golconda Express and Konark Express to halt.
In Hyderabad, commuters faced traffic jams and waterlogging since Tuesday night. Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy instructed officials to remain on high alert and to take precautions to prevent losses in paddy and cotton crops. He directed civic authorities to deploy disaster management teams for rescue operations and asked SDRF and NDRF teams to coordinate relief work in affected districts like Khammam, Warangal, and Nalgonda.
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