New Delhi:

Director General of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Atul Karwal said Thursday that a total of 33 teams are being deployed at the required places to deal with the situation as a cyclone in the Bay of Bengal closes in on Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.

Karwal made the announcement shortly after Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting to review preparedness for the cyclone.

"PM Modi held a meeting today and he has been given the details of the cyclone situation. We are in constant contact with the state governments and assured them of providing required NDRF teams. Now a total of 33 teams are being deployed to deal with the situation. All the people have been taken to safer places," Karwal told ANI.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an alert for the formation of a cyclone which is expected to cross the coasts of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha by the morning of December 4, with wind speeds ranging from 90 kmph to 100 kmph, accompanied by heavy rainfall and tidal waves in the coastal districts of these states.

Earlier on Wednesday, Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba in the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) meeting reviewed the preparedness of Central ministries agencies and state governments to deal with the situation.