Tamil Nadu COVID-19 Guidelines: Tourist spots, including Marina Beach, will reopen December 14.
Tamil Nadu has extended the general coronavirus-related restrictions till December 31 with fresh relaxations, including for reopening colleges and popular tourist spots, some of which have remained closed since March.
In under-graduate colleges, in-person learning can resume from December 7 with standard operating procedures. The relaxation has only been extended to final year students of arts, science, engineering, agriculture, and technical courses.
In medical and related colleges, however, all undergraduate and post-graduate classes will resume from December 7, a notification issued by the Tamil Nadu government read.
Classes for first-year undergraduate students in medical colleges will begin from December 1, with hostel facility, the notification added.
From December 14, Tamil Nadu's famous Marina Beach will be among the tourist centres that will reopen for the first time since the nationwide lockdown in March this year.
With permission from the collector or the police, indoor gatherings - political, social, religious or entertainment - have also been allowed with 50 per cent capacity or a maximum of 200 people.
So far, Tamil Nadu has the fourth highest coronavirus infections in India with 7.8 lakh cases and around 11,700 deaths, with highest infections being recorded in and around capital Chennai.
The state recorded 1,459 new COVID-19 infections in the last 24 hours with 9 disease-related deaths.
The statement by the Chief Minister said "Positivity rate in the state has come down below 6.5% as a result of good action by the state".
Amid Covid surge in certain parts of the country, especially the colder, northern states, the central government had recently released a fresh set of lockdown rules.
The states were allowed to impose localised restrictions like night curfews to contain the spread of COVID-19, but said any restriction on movement outside containment zones would have be to approved the Centre.
India has more than 94 lakh cases of coronavirus with 1,37,139 deaths.