Heavy rain in the aftermath of Cyclone Phailin triggered floods in Odisha on Monday. Over 2.5 lakh people are marooned in Balasore-one of the two worst hit districts along with Mayurbanj and several rivers were in spate.

Massive relief works have moved into top gear after the storm that hit the eastern coast in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh on Sunday night. The situation due to floods caused by cyclone induced rainfall in the two districts.

A cargo ship was also presumed sunk in rough seas caused by the cyclone off the coast of West Bengal but its crew of 17 Chinese nationals and an Indonesian were rescued on Monday.

Major rivers like Budhabalanga and Subarnarekha are in spate following sudden inflow of water, according to Odisha Special Relief Commissioner P K Mohapatra. Bhadrak district was also affected while flood fury loomed large over Ganjam district, the worst hit by the cyclone.

Teams from Army, Navy and IAF besides NDRF and ODRAF were deployed for rescue and relief operations in the flood-affected areas in Odisha. The death toll in the impact of the cyclone in the state has risen to 27 with four more people getting killed in the floods in Mayurbanj and Bhadrak districts.

Paradip Port today resumed partial operations after suffering extensive damages due to cyclone. Paradip Port Trust, Odisha, Chairman Sudhanshu Shekhara Mishra said that full operations will however take a few days more in view of heavy siltation, damages and grim weather.

In Andhra Pradesh, officials said rescue and relief operations were in full swing and they expect normalcy to be restored in cyclone-hit Srikakulam district in a couple of days. With the threat of cyclone dissipating, all relief camps in Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts are being closed.

In a related development, Centre is planning to invest nine thousand crore rupees on weather and cyclone forecasting and other allied activities. Briefing reporters in New Delhi on Monday, Minister of Earth Sciences, S Jaipal Reddy said that the early prediction of cyclonic storm Phailin was possible because of previous investments and other measures taken by the government. He said early prediction has helped unprecedented evacuation of over one million people in both the states.