Gujarat is home to many offshore oil installations and major ports in the country and most have been forced to suspend operations.
According to the Gujarat government, 21 teams of the National Disaster Response Force and 13 teams of the State Disaster Response Force have been deployed in the state for rescue work.
“We have already started evacuations from coastal areas. More than 7,000 people have been evacuated so far and the number is expected to cross 50,000 to 60,000,” said Kamal Dayani, a senior state official.
Two of India’s largest ports – Kandla and Mundra – located in Gujarat, have suspended operations, the state government said. Other ports including Bedi, Navlakhi, Porbandar, Okha, Pipavav and Bhavnagar have also closed due to the cyclone, according to shipping sources.
Reliance Industries, which operates the world’s largest refining complex in Gujarat’s Jamnagar, declared a force majeure, suspending exports of diesel and other oil products from Gujarat’s Sikka port due to the storm, traders said.
The Adani conglomerate’s ports business, Adani Ports, said it suspended vessel operations on Monday at Mundra, India’s biggest commercial port that has the country’s largest coal import terminal, and also at Tuna port near Kandla.
The Indian Coast Guard said it evacuated 50 personnel from a jack-up oil rig off Gujarat’s coast named Key Singapore, which is owned by Dubai-based Shelf Drilling and currently working for Cairn Oil & Gas (Vedanta), according to Shelf Drilling’s website.
In Pakistan, the National Disaster Management Authority said instructions were being given to take precautionary measures in southern and southeastern parts that may be affected.