With Cyclone Montha intensifying over the Bay of Bengal and expected to make landfall near Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday evening or night, both Odisha and Andhra Pradesh governments have stepped up preparedness, evacuating people from vulnerable areas and putting rescue teams on high alert, PTI reported.

The Odisha government on Monday evacuated around 3,000 people, including 1,496 pregnant women, from low-lying and hilly regions across eight southern districts — Malkangiri, Koraput, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Kalahandi and Kandhamal, where a red alert has been sounded.

Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said the evacuation drive, which prioritises pregnant women, the elderly and persons with disabilities, aims to move 32,528 people to safety

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