Indian Footballer Souvik Chakrabarti Appeals for Unity Amidst Cyclone Amphan Calamity

Indian football star Souvik Chakrabarti urged Indians to unite and help his home state of West Bengal, which was ravaged by Cyclone Amphan which has killed 80 people in the state.

The Hyderabad FC defender took to social media to ask people to highlight the 'grave humanitarian crisis' in 'West Bengal and its neighbouring states' due to the super cyclone along with the coronavirus.

Souvik urged people to think about the migrant labourers and daily wage earners who have suffered immensely in this time of crisis.

"The previous few days have seen West Bengal and its neighbouring states go through a particularly tough time. The cyclone Amphan as hit Bengal hard and coupled with the coronavirus situation, has taken a toll on our daily wage labourers and other vulnerable sections of society," Souvik posted on Twitter.

"I appeal to everybody; this is not the time for finger pointing or hostility. This is a grave humanitarian crisis and demands your attention and not your divisiveness. Surely a cyclone that is supposedly the worst since 1756, is the top agenda - a natural calamity that has brought life to a crashing halt?" he added.

Souvik went onto ask 'help' and 'generosity' from Indians and to be united.

"I appeal to all Indians - we need you help, your kindness and your generosity more than ever. We need to be united at this time, for everyone's sake." Souvik wrote in his post.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a Rs 1,000 crore "advance interim assistance" for West Bengal after taking aerial survey of the areas ravaged by Cyclone Amphan, accompanied by Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar.

India men's cricket team captain Virat Kohli had also tweeted asking God for mercy, writing on social media: "My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone affected by #CycloneAmphan in Odisha and West Bengal. May god protect everyone out there and hope things get better soon. #PrayforWestBengal.

Paralympian Deepa Malik also urged everyone to stand together in these tough times and her post read: "#AmphanCyclone has left a trail of destruction in Bengal and Odisha. The aftermath pictures are heart-wrenching. My prayers are with all those affected by it. Let us stand by each other and rise again."