Centre stands with people hit by Fani: Modi

Jaipur, May 3 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday that the Centre stood with the people in states hit by cyclone Fani.

Addressing an election rally in Hindaun near here, Modi said, "I want to assure the families affected by the cyclone that we are with them at this point of hour. We have collected fresh updates from the officials and had released a fund of Rs 1,000 crore for relief work on Thursday.

"Rescue teams have been operationalised. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indian Coast Guard, Indian Navy and Indian Army -- all have been working with the administration. Coming together to combat bad times is the spirit of India."

Extremely severe cyclonic storm Fani with a wind speed touching nearly 200 kmph made landfall earlier on Friday on the eastern coast of the country, wreaking havoc in Odisha. It will cross several districts in the state before advancing to neighbouring West Bengal.

On the political front, Modi said that the working pattern of the Congress can't be compared to that of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) when it came to tackling terrorism. In fact, the Congress was even questioning the timing of the declaration of Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, he said.

"Should the United Nations have asked the 'Namdaars' before making the declaration? Today, India has made a name for itself in the world. Our untiring efforts have helped in naming Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the world's most powerful body," the Prime Minister said.

"Masood Azhar has been hurting India for last many years. Many mothers have lost their sons who died fighting against these terrorists. However, now the terrorists will not be allowed to party in Pakistan any more," he said.

Modi is the third Prime Minister after Chaudhary Charan Singh and Indira Gandhi, and the first in 40 years, to visit Hindaun.