KARAIKAL: A total of 18 fishermen from Puducherry and Tamil Nadu who ventured into sea from Karaikal in a mechanised boat on Sunday night were arrested by the Sri Lankan navy early on Tuesday for alleged poaching.

All schools and colleges were closed for today in Puducherry and parts of Tamil Nadu as heavy rainfall triggered by Cyclone Fengal continued in those places. The cyclone weakened into a deep depression.

Puducherry bore the brunt of Cyclone Fengal’s fury, recording 490 mm of rainfall by Sunday morning — the UT’s highest 24-hour total in three decades.

The IMD reports a depression (remnant of Cyclone Fengal) over north coastal Tamil Nadu & Puducherry, moving west-northwest.

Amid persistent heavy rainfall and adverse weather conditions, authorities have ordered the closure of schools across several regions in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Kerala. The precautionary measure aims to ensure the safety of students amid challenging weather conditions caused by Cyclone Fengal.

Due to heavy rainfall caused by Cyclone Fengal, a holiday has been declared for Monday in all government and government-aided schools, private schools, and colleges in Puducherry, said the Union Territory's Education Minister A.

Cyclonic Storm Fengal is expected to hit the north Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coast between Karaikal and Mahabalipuram on Saturday evening, with wind speed

Cyclone Fengal made landfall on November 30 along the Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts, causing widespread flooding and damage.

Fengal cyclone brought heavy rainfall and flooding to 14 districts, including Chennai and Villupuram. While the downpour caused significant flooding due to excess water release from Sathanur dam, Chennai's water storage has increased,

According to the latest updates, schools and colleges in some parts of Tamil Nadu will remain closed due to heavy rainfall. Schools and colleges will be closed in Karaikal and Puducherry and also a few parts of Chennai.