The Cabinet Secretary took a detailed review of the flood situation including the rescue and relief measures undertaken by Tamil Nadu government and assistance provided by central government. Today also four flights are being operated.
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Tamil Nadu government claims 3000 buses are plying on the roads. By all accounts, the state capital bore the brunt. Chennai did not experience heavy rainfall since yesterday and the flood waters are receding.
Fourteen patients admitted at an intensive care unit of MIOT Hospital in Chennai died due to power failure following floods, an official said.
Most offices, commercial establishments and educational institutions in the city and surrounding areas were closed during the period and the functioning of hospitals and hotels, among other facilities, had been severely affected.
An NDRF spokesperson said so far, its teams have evacuated 16,325 stranded flood victims, 30 livestock and distributed 19,465 food packets and 16,002 water packets in the affected areas.
As rains halted on Thursday and early Friday, some shops opened in parts of flooded Chennai including Mylapore and Teynampet.
Waterlogging continued in many parts such as Kotturpuram, suburban Mudichur and Pallikkaranai even as hapless residents who had taken refuge on higher floors of buildings were seen pleading for essentials like milk and water which remain in short supply.
Skeletal public transport was operational from Friday morning in some areas.
Vikram Kapur, a commissioner of the Chennai Corporation, a government body that administers the city, said that employees had gone to forewarn residents when the reservoir was opened up.
“What is heartwarming is that the people of Chennai are helping out”, said Arun Ebenezer, who has been forced to stay with a friend for three days after rain began to beat down on Tuesday.
It said that operation of the civilian flights from the Naval air base in Arakonam was continuing.
A massive relief operation is continuing to get food and medicines to tens of thousands people. Clear weather provided an opportunity to the Air Force team to carry our greater number of sorties for relief and rescue operations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised $150m (£99m) to the flood-hit Tamil Nadu state.
As a result, the government has shut down schools and advised private businesses to close their doors until the rainfall ends.
Anger spilled on to the streets when senior ministers Natham Viswanathan, Sellur Raju and Gokul Indira visited R K Nagar, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s constituency, where people gheraoed and heckled them forcing them to make a hasty retreat.
While November and December are typically wet across Tamil Nadu, this year was exceptional, AccuWeather reported.
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