Thoothukudi closes schools as heavy rain continues

Thoothukudi district authorities closed schools on Thursday, October 22, as persistent heavy rain continued and the India Meteorological Department forecast further downpours across parts of southern India. District Collector Vishu Mahajan announced the holiday, according to the district administration. The closure followed school shutdowns on Wednesday, October 21, in Chennai, Tiruvallur, Chengalpattu and Kancheepuram after heavy rainfall. Those closures applied to that day; reports said no fresh closure order had been issued for Chennai on Thursday. Separate reports also said schools in Tirunelveli, Kanniyakumari and Tenkasi were closed on Thursday. In the Union Territory of Puducherry, schools in Puducherry and Karaikal were also to remain closed Thursday, Education Minister A Namachivayam said. The announcement covered government, government-aided and private schools. Mechanised boat fishermen in Thoothukudi were advised to refrain from going to sea during the heavy rainfall, according to the district administration. The IMD attributed the expected rain to a low-pressure area over the southwest Bay of Bengal, off the Tamil Nadu coast. Its forecast called for isolated heavy...