Chennai: The Tamilnadu government has declared a public holiday for six districts today, in view of the cyclonic storm ‘Burevi’, that is crossing the southern coast this morning.

An official release said, since the Met office has forecast heavy rains and gusty winds when the cyclone crosses the coast between Pamban and Kanniyakumari today morning, as a precautionary measure, holiday was declared in Kanniyakumari, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi, Ramanathapuram, Virudhunagar and Tuticorin districts.

This will be compensated with a working day on any of the Saturdays next month. The government has advised the people in these districts not to come out of their houses except for essential needs.

Meanwhile, Tuticorin airport has also been closed as a precautionary measure. It would be re-open after the cyclone crossed the coast.

In neighbouring Kerala too, where a red alert has been issued, flight operations will remain suspended at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport from 10 am to 6 pm today.

Also, the State government, in a statement, said that today is a public holiday for the districts of Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Idukki.