Puducherry, Nov 8 (IANS): Heavy rains continued to lash Puducherry on Monday under the influence of cyclonic circulation in the Bay of Bengal, and the Union Territory government has declared a holiday for schools and colleges on Tuesday also.

Meanwhile, several homes were destroyed in the rains and waterlogging and the opposition leader, R. Siva demanded the government to sanction immediate relief to all those affected.

In a statement on Monday, the DMK leader said that people who have lost their homes have nowhere to go and as an immediate relief, the government must sanction a minimum amount of Rs 20,000.

School for students of classes 1 to 8, scheduled to begin from Monday, was postponed after the heavy rains and inundation in several places and School Education Minister, S. Namassivayam has announced that schools will reopen only after the rain subsides.

Control rooms are operated at the PWD offices, Police, Health, and Revenue Departments to attend to any exigencies.

According to officers in the Water Resources Department, the water level has reached the maximum level at Oussudu and Bahour lakes that are the major sources of water in the Union Territory.

Oussudu lake, which is the most important freshwater lake in Puducherry region, has a capacity of 540 million cubic feet and covers an area of about 800 hectares spread across Puducherry and Tamil Nadu. While 390 hectares of the lake are in Puducherry, the rest is in Tamil Nadu. The water level in the lake has touched 3.5 m total height which is its maximum capacity.