Rain-hit Chennai limps back to normalcy, school and colleges reopen today

After two severe spells of rain flooded most of Chennai, the city is slowly limping back to normalcy.

Schools and colleges in Chennai reopened on Thursday after a gap of at least 15 days. However, 24 government schools in the city continued to remain closed. Most educational institutes in Thiruvallur district also reopen on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the death toll in rain-related incidents mounted to at least 176 on Wednesday, even as the weatherman forecast more rains in the next couple of days.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 23, pegging the flood damage at Rs 8,481 crore, and urged him to immediately release Rs 2,000 crore to sustain relief work.

The Centre, however, released a sum of Rs 939 crore in addition to Rs 330 crore given earlier.

A team of officials is also slated to visit Tamil Nadu on Thursday to make first-hand assessment of the damage caused by the floods.

(With PTI Inputs)