Tamil Nadu heavy rainfall has forced schools to close in Thoothukudi and across Puducherry and Karaikal, while the India Meteorological Department has warned of heavy to very heavy rain in several parts of the region through October 25.
Thoothukudi district administration announced a holiday for schools on Thursday after continuous rain affected urban and suburban areas. District Collector Vishu Mahajan announced the closure, while mechanised boat fishermen were advised not to venture into the sea because of the deteriorating weather conditions.
In the neighbouring Union Territory of Puducherry, all government, government-aided and private schools in Puducherry and Karaikal were also declared closed on Thursday. Education Minister A Namachivayam announced the decision in view of the heavy-rain warning.
The IMD said a low-pressure area over the southwest Bay of Bengal, off the Tamil Nadu coast, was likely to bring isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Karaikal and Kerala between October 21 and 25. For Thursday, it forecast heavy to very heavy rain at isolated places, along with thunderstorms, lightning and gusty winds reaching 40-50 kmph at one or two locations.
The rain has also affected Chennai, where showers that began on Tuesday continued overnight. MGR Nagar recorded the highest rainfall in the city at 15 cm, while several neighbourhoods in and around the state capital received between 10 cm and 15 cm. The IMD has issued a yellow alert for Chennai.
The forecast covers a wide belt of southern and central Tamil Nadu. Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli, Kanniyakumari, Tenkasi, Virudhunagar, Ramanathapuram, Theni, Dindigul, Madurai, Coimbatore, the Nilgiris, Sivaganga, Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai are among the districts identified as likely to receive heavy to very heavy rainfall. Karaikal has also been included in the warning.
The weather department has forecast widespread rainfall on October 23. Heavy to very heavy rain is likely at isolated places in Kanniyakumari, the Nilgiris and Coimbatore districts. The IMD bulletin also warned of thunderstorms and lightning in these areas, with gusty winds of 40-50 kmph possible at one or two locations.
The school closures and fishing advisory reflect the immediate administrative response to the warning, while the district-level rainfall forecasts indicate that conditions may vary significantly across Tamil Nadu. Authorities have not announced a broader closure covering all districts, and further decisions will depend on local weather conditions and official advisories.
