Tamil Nadu’s coastal districts are likely to continue receiving rains on Friday, as a low pressure area has formed over Sri Lanka and the south west Bay of Bengal. The showers will, however, remain moderate, according to S Balachandran, Director of the Area Cyclone Warning Centre in Chennai.
As far as schools are concerned, institutions in Nagapattinam will remain closed on Friday due to heavy rains in the district. Chennai and other districts are yet to make an announcement on the matter.
"Since rains were moderate in Chennai during the day, we have decided that schools can function as of now," Collector Anbuselvan told TNM. "But we will see how the situation is through the night. If it rains heavily we will take a call in the morning," he added.
On Thursday, the Chief Minister held a high-level meeting at the Secretariat to discuss the damage caused by the rain in the state over the last week. Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and Ministers D Jayakumar, Dindugal Sreenivasan, Vijayabhaskar and Thangamani were present at the meeting.
The death of two young girls in Kodungaiyur after stepping on a live wire reportedly took centrestage in their discussion.
The government announced ex-gratia of Rs 3 lakh for each bereaved family. The Tamil Nadu Electricity Board will also be giving a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the grieving families.
Other ministers have, meanwhile, been visiting waterlogged districts across the state. Textiles Minister OS Manian, who was overseeing relief work in Nagapattinam, said that unauthorised houses had caused waterlogging in some areas. "People have been shifted to relief centres. But we will ensure that they are provided alternate housing in the coming year," he said.
Two ministers have been designated for each zone in Chennai to expedite relief. More suction pumps have been deployed to clear water logging in the city.
The government also sought to allay public fears of overflowing reservoirs.
"The Chembarambakkam reservoir that provides water for Chennai city is only 15% full," said Revenue Minister Udhayakumar. "We request people to stop spreading and believing rumours that state otherwise," he added.