Ranchi and East Singhbhum administrations have ordered all schools from kindergarten to Class XII to remain closed on October 28 and 29 as Cyclone Arnab brings the risk of heavy rain, thunderstorms, lightning and strong winds to Jharkhand. The order covers government, aided, minority and private schools in both districts.
Private schools may conduct examinations already scheduled for these dates, but they must inform the district education officer or district superintendent of education, according to the directions reported by the Times of India. The closure was announced as the cyclone was expected to make landfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast early on Wednesday.
The Ranchi order was issued by Deputy Commissioner Manjunath Bhajantri under Section 34 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005. The India Meteorological Department said Cyclone Arnab was positioned over the west-central Bay of Bengal and was expected to reach the Andhra Pradesh coast with wind speeds of 130-140 kmph and gusts of up to 150 kmph.
Senior IMD Ranchi scientist Abhishek Anand said the cyclone’s core would remain away from Jharkhand, but its rain-bearing cloud bands were likely to bring widespread rainfall. Ranchi, Lohardaga, Gumla, Khunti, Simdega, East Singhbhum, West Singhbhum and Seraikela-Kharsawan were expected to receive heavy rain on Wednesday, with the weather system’s peak impact in Jharkhand likely on Thursday.
Several western districts were placed under an orange alert, while Ranchi was under a yellow alert. Surface winds in the state could reach 50-60 kmph on October 28 and 29. The combination of heavy rain, lightning and strong winds prompted district authorities to prioritise the safety of schoolchildren and reduce movement during the alert period.
Ranchi Municipal Corporation has deployed eight quick-response teams across four zones and placed its sanitation, transport and horticulture wings on round-the-clock alert. Excavators, motor pumps and super suckers have been readied to respond to waterlogging, fallen trees and other emergencies.
In East Singhbhum, Deputy Commissioner Rajiv Ranjan directed officials to identify vulnerable pockets, keep evacuation plans and relief shelters ready, and maintain emergency power teams. Residents in both districts have been advised to avoid unnecessary travel and stay away from open fields, trees and electric poles during thunderstorms.
Control rooms in the two districts will monitor rainfall, road conditions, drainage points and reports of damage from residents through the alert period. Flights and trains in Jharkhand were operating normally on Tuesday, although the railways cancelled several passenger services through the Odisha-Andhra coastal belt, including the Howrah-Jagdalpur Samaleswari Express, which runs via Tatanagar, Rajkharsawan and Chakradharpur.
