It will pour in Tamil Nadu for at least 72 hours, perhaps even a week more: Met dept

New Delhi: New Delhi: Rains will continue to batter Tamil Nadu for the next seven days and the next 48 hours are "very crucial", the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Wednesday.

IMD Director General Laxman Singh Rathore attributed the heavy rains to a "trough of low" over Southwest Bay of Bengal off Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka coast which will continue to bring rains over the next three days. Thereafter, the state will see an anti-cyclone activity which will be associated with "heavy rains" at some places.

"The phenomenon will continue for the next seven days, but the next 48 hours are very crucial. Neighbouring states will also see rainfall activity," Rathore said.

He said the Union Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi chaired a high-level meeting with the "stake holders", including officials of National Disaster Management Authority, which was attended by Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary through a video conference. The IMD also briefed about the weather forecast.

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A warning has also been issued for coastal districts of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh (especially Nellore and Chittoor), interior Tamil Nadu and Rayalseema region of Andhra Pradesh.

The period October to December is referred to as Northeast Monsoon season over peninsular India. It is a major period of rainfall activity over the southern peninsula, particularly Coastal Andhra Pradesh, Rayalaseema, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

For Tamil Nadu this is the main rainy season accounting for about 48 per cent of the annual rainfall. Coastal districts of the state get nearly 60 per cent of the annual rainfall and the interior districts about 40-50 per cent of the precipitation.

However, this season Tamil Nadu alone has witnessed 50 per cent excess rainfall by December 1 itself. "Almost all districts of Tamil Nadu have received excess rainfall ranging from 10 to 150 per cent," Rathore said.

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According to the IMD data, Chennai has seen 89 per cent more than normal rainfall this season, while the districts of Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur, Vellore and Tirunveliveli received 154 per cent, 139 per cent, 136 per cent and 110 per cent excess precipitation respectively so far.

"Recent data shows that northern coastal regions of Tamil Nadu has witnessed around 30-35 cms of rain. The reservoirs in the region are already full, because of which the water is filling the low-lying areas. We advise people in these regions to shift to safer locations," he added.

He also said that the situation is looking grim as the rains are expected in southern Tamil Nadu and Kerala as well.

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Many parts of Chennai and the suburbs have been flooded from the incessant rains that have hit the city in the past 24 hours, amidst the worst ever flood situation in Tamil Nadu.

The water has entered inside houses in the low-lying areas of Anna nagar and there is water-logging in almost every part of the city. The flight operations at the Chennai Airport have been closed for the whole day because of the flooded water on the runway.

Telephone services took a hit as several areas were cut-off due to water-logging.

"The uninterrupted rains have resulted in excessive water-logging and disruption of essential services causing power failure and impacting our services in some regions," Bharti Televentures said in a statement.

"We at Airtel are relentlessly working with the local authorities to enable smooth mobile communication for Airtel customers across the city," a company statement said.

Chennai and several coastal areas of the state were marooned in flood waters and the neighbouring districts cutting the state capital from rail and road links even as the airport was shutdown for the day.

Though the heavy rains, that lashed the city and the suburbs and neighbouring districts of Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur and Cuddalore for more than a day on Tuesday have shown a let up since this morning, a continuous drizzle under overcast skies spelled further trouble for citizens.

Teams of army, navy, coast guard and NDRF have been deployed in the worst-affected areas of Tambaram, the southern gateway to the city, Mudichur and Oorapakkam.

Police and fire service personnel were also involved in rescue operations. The Coast Guard has deployed its boats in some areas in the city that has witnessed unprecedented rains in a short period of time in recent memory.

Teams have also been pressed into service in Jafarkhanpet, Saidapet and Kotturpuram on the banks of Adyar and Vadapalani and Valasaravakkam and several areas in the western parts of the city which have been flooded with waters entering residential homes.

The southern suburbs of Chennai including Velachery, Madipakkam and neighbouring areas which had suffered heavily in the earlier spells of rain in November were again hit badly by the downpour that has again flooded homes.