Chennai and several parts of Tamil Nadu have been witnessing a historical rainfall for the first time in six years and amid a large-scale disruption, the state has on Monday been issued with a red alert with the warning that Tamil Nadu would record extreme heavy rainfall on November 10 and 11. The red alert has been issued with the prediction that the low-pressure area is likely to form by November 9 and it will intensify on November 10 and 11 when it nears the eastern coast of Tamil Nadu. 

As the incessant rainfall had inundated Chennai and several parts of the state, the downpour had brought back the memories of the 2015 floods and the current rainfall had caused major damage to normal lives. The state government had declared Monday as a public holiday in light of the incessant rainfall and the rescue and evacuation measures are taking place by the government officials and by the contingent of the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF). 

The meteorological department has said that a cyclone circulation lies over north coastal Tamil Nadu, southeast of the Bay of Bengal and a low-pressure area is likely to form by November 9. It has been predicted that widespread rainfall will occur until at least November 10. In its official statement, the weather forecasting department said, "A cyclonic circulation lies over the southeast Bay of Bengal and adjoining the equatorial Indian Ocean, extending up to 4.5 km above sea level." 

"Under its influence, a low-pressure area is likely to form over the southeast Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood around November 9. It is likely to become more marked and move towards the north Tamil Nadu coast during the subsequent 48 hrs", the statement added. The coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh have also been issued warnings of heavy rains. As the sequel of the heavy rains, the Tamil Nadu government had declared Monday as a public holiday. 

While all the government offices are shut apart from the essential services, the private companies have been instructed to declare holiday or allow their employees to work from home. Chief Minister MK Stalin has taken stock of the situations aftermath of the rainfall in Chennai and he had advised the people who are planning to come to Chennai to defer their travel for two more days. Speaking about the heavy rainfall in the state, Tamil Nadu Minister for Revenue and Disaster Management KKSSR Ramachandran has said, "There has been widespread rainfall in 26 districts of Tamil Nadu. Due to this, four people had died in rain-related incidents and one was injured."

By citing that over 250 houses were damaged, the minister said 160 relief centres have been installed in Chennai and over 50,451 food packets were distributed to people by the government on Sunday. He further said that adequate teams of the National and State Disaster Response forces have been deployed wherever required, including Chennai. The city has witnessed a 24-hour rainfall between 8.30 am on November 6 and November 7 for the first time since 2015.