Covid-19 scare: Tamil Nadu government declares holidays for students up to class V

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government on Sunday declared holidays for students studying in classes up to V (including kindergartens) till March 31 in the wake of novel coronavirus scare.
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The government also directed closure of cinema theatres and malls in border districts as a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of Covid-19 from neighbouring states.
In a statement, chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami said cinema halls and malls in 16 border districts, including Theni, Kanyakumari, Tirupur, Coimbatore, the Nilgiris, Tiruvallur, Vellore, Tirpuattur, Ranipet, Dindigul and Dharmapuri, should remain closed till the end of this month to avoid mass gatherings.
The chief minister instructed appointment of special officers to supervise cleaning of halls, temples, mosques and churches.
He announced allocation of Rs 60 crore from the State Disaster Relief Fund to carry out precautionary measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the state. Out of the Rs 60 crore, Rs 30 crore has been allocated to the health department.
The chief minister advised the public to avoid travelling out of the state for next 15 days.
Holiday in Puducherry
KG and primary schools will remain closed in the Union territory of Puducherry from Monday till further orders, said education minister R Kamalakannan.