Chennai, Dec 4: Heavy rains are likely to lash parts of coastal districts of Tamil Nadu in the next two days following a trough of low over Bay of Bengal, the regional weather office said Tuesday.

In the last 24 hours ended 8.30 AM today, there were widespread rains in many parts in coastal Tamil Nadu and neighbouring Puducherry, Deputy Director General of Meteorology, S Balachandran told reporters here.

The trough of low over Southwest Bay of Bengal and neighbourhood now runs from Comorin area to southwest Bay of Bengal off south Andhra Pradesh coast, he said.

"Due to this, there were widespread rains in the last 24 hours in the coastal areas of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry," he added.

According to the rainfall data at 8.30 AM today, Ponneri and Cholavaram in Tiruvallur district recorded 13 cm and 8 cm, respectively, followed by Kelambakkam (Kancheepuram) at 7 cm.

The regional weather office further forecast heavy rains in one or two places in the coastal districts of Tamil Nadu in the next two days, while light showers were likely in most places in the state and Puducherry.

There would be intermittent showers in and around Chennai and the neighbourhood during this period, it said.

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Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Friday said that the state government has decided to formulate a new policy for footpaths in Bengaluru, under which street vending will not be allowed on main roads and sub-main roads.

Addressing the media after a budget preparation meeting and executive meeting of GBA corporations at Vidhana Soudha, Shivakumar said discussions were held with MLAs from the GBA region regarding the corporations’ budgets and key civic issues.

Leader of Opposition R. Ashok also participated in the meeting and shared his views. Officials from multiple departments, including police, BESCOM, BMRCL, BWSSB and BDA, along with ministers and legislators, were present.

He stated that all five municipalities have prepared their individual budgets, while MLAs have submitted their demands, including calls for ward-wise grants.

“We have decided to bring a new policy for footpaths. Citizens are struggling to walk as footpaths are encroached upon by street vendors,” Shivakumar said.

Highlighting the need to balance livelihoods and public convenience, he added that “a separate space will be provided for street vendors, and specific roads will be designated for their business,” ensuring that pedestrians can use footpaths without obstruction. He noted that there was unanimous agreement among MLAs on this approach.

Issuing a warning to vendors, Shivakumar said that authorities will act against those violating the rules. “If vendors operate during the day and leave their carts on the roadside at night, authorities will clear them. People should be aware of this,” he said.

Providing data on street vendors, he said that around 60,000 vendors have registered so far, of which 30,000 have applied for vehicles, and a tender has already been floated.

“Only those with street vendor identity cards will be allowed to do business. Those without ID cards will not be permitted to operate on the streets,” he added.