INDIA: Chennai Floods, Commercial Flights To Begin Soon

In a positive note for stranded passengers amid the floods in Chennai, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma on Saturday said that commercial flights are expected to begin their services soon, once power is restored in the airport.

"We started technical flights yesterday, but resuming commercial flights services will take time as the airport basement remains flooded and there is no power supply. We expect commercial flight services to resume after December 6," Sharma said.

He added that four flights, including those of Air India will resume today and that four flights had carted around 319 stranded passengers back home yesterday. "Once power supply is restored and water evacuation happens, we can restart commercial flight services," Sharma added.

Meanwhile, with the torrential rains having slowed down to light showers, rescue ops and relief works have intensified as the NDRF and the Navy are taking advantage of the situation to help the stranded people.