Odisha cyclone Fani: 800,000 to be evacuated today via buses, trains, boats

Tourists have also been advised to leave coastal towns in West Bengal and Odisha, state government officials said

India will use boats, buses and trains to evacuate 800,000 people along its east coast on Thursday ahead of an approaching cyclone that is forecast to make landfall within 24 hours, officials said.

Severe Cyclonic Storm Fani was centred in the west of the Bay of Bengal, the India Meteorological Office said. The south coast of Odisha was also expected to get heavy to very heavy rainfall on Thursday, it said in a bulletin.

The state-run weather office also forecast wind speeds gusting up to 200 kph (125 mph) by Friday. Cyclone tracker Tropical Storm Risk rated Fani a mid-range category 3