Intermittent rains keep Chennai on toes, situation eases; flight and train services resume

Chennai: Intermittent rains on Sunday and forecast of more over the next two days kept Chennai, its suburbs and coastal districts on their toes even as normal life appeared to be returning to the flood-ravaged areas. All flight operations, domestic and international, and train services from both Chennai Central and Egmore are to resume on Monday as water levels in the Adyar and Cooum rivers receded enabling authorities to restore tracks on Sunday afternoon.

Throughout Sunday, there have been intermittent rains, which were at times heavy, in Chennai, its suburbs, Kanchipuram, Thiruvallur and Cuddalore districts where the weatherman has predicted more rains for the next 48 hours. Rain-battered Cuddalore is likely to get heavy to very heavy showers, Meteorological department said, adding that today's showers were due to a twin weather system, including formation of a new trough of low pressure over Bay of Bengal along the Tamil Nadu coast. Chennai city, which has been experiencing intermittent rains, would continue to be cloudy and rain or thundershowers, at times heavy, are likely.

Power supply has been restored in several areas, while it continued to be disconnected in many others where water has not receded as a measure of precaution. Ravaged by heavy rains last week which crippled services, several private and public sector banks operated on Sunday. A big chunk of private and public sector banks functioned to clear the backlog caused by the rains which had paralysed ATM services. As a precautionary measure, the state government has declared holidays for schools and colleges on Monday in the districts, including Chennai, Kanchipuram and Tiruvallur.

All domestic and international flights from Chennai, both day and night, will resume from Monday morning after partial day-time services operated on Sunday. "....availability of Chennai airport for all weather day and night operations for all flights for which domestic and international terminals will be available from 6 am of 7.12.2015," an Airport Authority of India statement said late on Sunday evening.

This followed an inspection by DGCA for night operations, an AAI spokesman said. The airport was shut down last Tuesday night after heavy downpour flooded the runway and all other operating areas. Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathy Raju is likely to visit Chennai airport tomorrow to make an on-the-spot inspection.