10-May-2019: Cyclone Fani’s fury creates four new mouths in Odisha’s Chilika Lake

The extremely severe cyclone, Fani, has created four new mouths in Chilika Lake, Asia’s largest brackish water lake, connecting to Bay of Bengal. Chilika Development Authority (CDA) officials have started studying the impact of saline ingression into the lake.

Chilika lagoon had only two active mouths — the point where it meets the sea before Fani hit the Odisha coast on May 3. Four new mouths have opened due to wave energy with high tidal prism.

While three new mouths have come up between the two functional mouths near Sanpatna and Arakhakuda, a smaller mouth has been noticed on the northern side.

In the meantime, a lot of sea water is entering Chilika Lake. We are now monitoring its salinity level at different stations. If sea water ingression goes up, fish migration will increase and the biodiversity will get richer. But its long term impact is something we will have to keep a watch on.

Three of the four sectors are more or less marine ecosystems. The rise in salinity will lead to increase in productivity. Chilika Lake is a mixture of saline and fresh water. The three new mouths may ultimately merge with the two functional mouths.

On the issue of its possible impact on the endangered Irrawaddy dolphins, the CDA chief said: “Increase in salinity will not have an impact on dolphins as they can survive in salinity. Lot of rolling dolphins are not visible in Chilika water. They seem to be under stress because the lake witnessed a seven feet high tide coupled with strong winds.”

Though nesting grounds at Panchakudi and Mangalajodi have been affected, they would be ready to host migratory birds by the time they arrive in winter.

28-Apr-2019: Cyclone Fani likely to intensify into severe cyclonic storm

Cyclone Fani, which has been forming in south-east Bay of Bengal and the adjoining Indian Ocean, is very likely to intensify into a 'severe cyclonic storm' in the next six hours and further soar into a 'very severe cyclonic storm' in the next 24 hours.

Fani currently lays over 745 kilometres east-southeast of Trincomalee (Sri Lanka), 1,050 kilometres southeast of Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and 1,230 kilometres south-southeast of Machilipatnam (Andhra Pradesh).

Heavy falls at isolated places are very likely over Kerala on April 29 and 30. The cyclone will not make landfall in Tamil Nadu, but may bring light rain in some northern parts, the weather department said. Earlier, it was expected to cause heavy rains in northern Tamil Nadu, including Chennai.

Light to moderate rainfall is very likely at a few places over north coastal Andhra Pradesh and south coastal Odisha on May 2. It is likely to increase in intensity with heavy rainfall over coastal Odisha from May 3.

Strong winds with speed reaching 30-40 kmph gusting to 50 kmph are likely to commence along and off the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coast, Comorin area and Gulf of Mannar from Sunday. It will intensify a day later.

It is very likely to become squally with wind speed reaching 50-60 kmph and gusting to 70 kmph from the morning of April 30 along north Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and south Andhra Pradesh coasts. Strong winds with speed reaching 30-40 kmph and gusting to 50 kmph are likely to commence along and off Kerala coast from the evening of April 28.

Under the category of 'very severe cyclonic storm', Fani is expected to reach the state at a speed of 140-150 kmph on Tuesday. Sea conditions are expected to be "rough to very rough" along and off Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh coasts from April 29 to May 1. The sea conditions will be "very rough" along and off the north Andhra Pradesh coast from May 1-3 and along off Odisha coast from May 2 onwards.

The IMD has also advised fishermen along the coasts of Sri Lanka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry not to venture into the sea. Cyclone Fani will change direction and not cross Tamil Nadu and south Andhra coast.

Fani cyclonic storm will slowly change the direction after May 1 to the north and northeastward. It will not cross Tamil Nadu coast and south Andhra coast. Also, as a gale of wind speed at 65-85 kmph is expected over the region where the storm is intensifying, fishermen were advised not to venture into sea along the southern coast. And those who are already in the deep sea areas were advised to return to the coast by Sunday.

The wind speed is likely to decrease gradually thereafter with gale wind speed reaching 130-140 kmph gusting to 150 kmph over the west-central Bay of Bengal off Andhra Pradesh Coast on May 3.

The storm has been named 'Fani', pronounced as 'Foni', as suggested by Bangladesh.

21-May-2019: Netherlands’ ‘Room for the River’ project that Kerala CM wants to replicate

At the beginning of his 13-day European tour beginning May 8, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had made a stop at Noordward in the Netherlands, the site of the ‘Room for the River’ project. The flagship project of the Dutch government is centered around protecting areas adjoining rivers from routine flooding and improving water management systems in delta regions.

On his return from Europe this week, the Kerala CM spoke of incorporating the model in the state’s ‘Rebuild Kerala’ plan. Last year, Kerala had witnessed the century’s worst floods, which claimed nearly 500 lives and wiped out thousands of homes.

The Netherlands has historically been prone to flooding of rivers due to its low elevation. Much of the country lies below the sea level. The country is located in the delta region of several major rivers like the Rhine, the Meuse and the Scheldt.

In fact, the rise of water levels in the sea and rivers due to the effects of climate change is one of the major challenges facing the Dutch. But over the years, the country’s expert water management techniques and creation of independent local government bodies for flood control have borne praise across the world.

The basic premise of the ‘Room for the River’ project is essentially to provide more space for the water body so that it can manage extraordinary high water levels during floods. The project, implemented at over 30 locations across the Netherlands and funded at a cost of 2.3 billion euros, involves tailor-made solutions for each river.

Among the nine measures which define the project are lowering the flood plain, deepening the summer bed, strengthening of dykes, relocation of dykes, reducing the height of the groynes, increasing the depth of the side channels and removing obstacles.

A key aspect of the project is also to improve the surroundings of the river banks through fountains and panoramic decks. The landscapes are altered in a way that they turn into natural sponges which can accommodate excess water during floods.

The LDF government in Kerala believes the project and its foundational ideals can be replicated in Kuttanad, the state’s rice bowl located below the sea-level. In the floods last year, Kuttanad and adjoining regions in Kottayam and Alappuzha districts remained submerged for weeks.

Since the major rivers in the state empty out into Kuttanad, there’s a need for long-term comprehensive solutions on the lines of the Dutch project to prevent flooding in the region.