Incessant rain lashed many parts of Vellore and neighbouring towns, such as Ambur, Vaniyambadi, Arani, Gudiyatham, Tiruvannamalai, Chengam, Polur, and Tirupattur, since Wednesday.
The heavy downpour, which continued in the early hours on Thursday, brought much needed relief to residents as they have been reeling under the sun for the past few weeks. Primary schools alone were shut in the district on Thursday following a direction from Vellore Collector P. Kumaravel Pandian.
Low-lying areas, such as Sampath Nagar and Kansalpet in Vellore, were inundated in the showers. Key stretches, including the service lanes of Chennai-Bengaluru Highway (NH 44) and Chittoor-Cuddalore Highway, were waterlogged. Frequent power cuts, especially on Wednesday night, were also reported in many areas due to heavy rain with strong winds.
“Waterlogging remains a persisting problem in Vellore town as most of the storm-water drains are clogged. Many stretches, which were dug up for various civic works, have also not been relaid,” said S. Priya, a motorist.
Tiruvannamalai received 288 mm of rainfall, while Ranipet got 359.1 mm and Vellore received 101.2 mm. Among the major towns, Arcot in Ranipet received the highest rain of 92.6 mm, followed by Polur (Tiruvannamalai) with 88.2 mm as of 6 a.m. on Thursday.
Areas in Tiruvannamalai such as Arani, Jamunamarathur (Jawadhu Hills), Polur, Tiruvannamalai town, Kilpennathur, and Thandarampattu witnessed good rainfall. In Vellore, areas such as Pernambut, Gudiyatham, Katpadi, Vellore Old Town, Bagayam and Sathuvachari witnessed heavy rain till Thursday morning.
Of the seven taluks in Ranipet district, Ranipet town recorded 67.8 mm of rainfall, followed by Kalavai with 46.2 mm and Walajah with 42.5 mm, as of 6 a.m. on Thursday. Major towns in the district, such as Arakkonam, Sholinghur, Nemili, and Kaveripakkam, also saw good rain.
In Tirupattur, Vaniyambadi received 17 mm of rainfall, Alangayam got 14 mm, and Tirupattur town received 12.8 mm.
Meanwhile, idol procession was allowed in Ambur, Arakkonam, Vandavasi, Arcot, Gudiyatham, and Arani, where the weather was mild on Thursday.
