Gudalur: With the extension of the Tamil Nadu lockdown with more concessions, permission has been granted to start inter-state services. Buses from Karnataka have started plying to parts of the Nilgiris, including Ooty. Tamil Nadu Transport Corporation has also started bus service to Karnataka.

The buses, which started on Monday morning, had fewer passengers. Services to both sides were suspended due to covid for four months. Services from Kerala are not permitted. At the same time, tourists from states including Kerala and Karnataka were allowed to come. Access will be granted to holders of documents as per covid norms.

Ooty’s Botanical Gardens, Rose Garden, and Coonoor Sims Park are also open from Monday. Due to the end of the Muharram and Onam holidays, tourist arrivals are low on Mondays. Permission to visit Theppakkad Elephant Camp at Mudumalai Tiger Reserve will be granted soon, officials said.

Bangalore: The states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have come up with more concessions because of the low spread of Covid. Schools and pre-university colleges will be opened in Karnataka today. Cinema theaters and bars in Tamil Nadu will be open from today.

In Karnataka, the study will start from today in schools in districts where the TPR is less than two percent. Classes 9 to 12 start. Classes are held until noon on alternate days with students divided into two batches. Degree classes began last month.

Movie theaters and bars in Tamil Nadu opened with restrictions from today. Half the people in the theater will be allowed. Classes 9 to 12 and college studies are scheduled to begin next month. All employees in IT affiliates will be allowed. Admission to the beach, swimming pool, zoo, and botanical garden.

New Delhi: Air India will operate direct flights from Kochi to London from today. With this, Kochi will become the only airport in the state to have direct flights to Europe. The service will be available three days a week (Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday).

The Kochi-London flight takes about 10 hours. The direct service from London’s Heathrow Airport to Kochi Airport was launched last Wednesday after the UK removed India from the Red List earlier this month. Following the overwhelming response, Air India decided to launch direct flights from Kochi to London.

Kabul: With the Taliban taking control of Afghanistan, all the stranded Malayalees who did not know how to escape from here have been repatriated. All were flown back on an Air Force C17 flight from Kabul to Ghaziabad this morning.

The Air Force plane with 168 people on board landed at Hinton Base in Ghaziabad. As many as 390 people were airlifted to Delhi today as part of an Afghan rescue mission. The Taliban reportedly detained 168 people on board an Air Force plane yesterday. They were released by the Taliban after being interrogated.

The group that arrived in Delhi along with the Malayalees included Afghan nationals including MPs. A total of 222 people from Afghanistan had returned to India this morning. Flights arrived from Tajikistan and Qatar. Two Nepalese nationals were deported along with the Indians. About 135 people arrived in Doha on US flights from here to Delhi on an Air India flight. The foreign ministry said the rescue operation would continue.

New Delhi: Slight change in fuel prices in the country. Petrol prices have been reduced by 15 to 20 paise per liter and diesel by 18 to 20 paise per liter. Petrol prices have come down by 20 paise after remaining unchanged for more than a month. Petrol prices remained unchanged for 35 consecutive days. Diesel prices were down by 60 paise for three consecutive days from August 18 to 20. However, fuel prices in all major cities of the country have remained at all-time highs for the past one month.

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government has announced a major relaxation in Covid restrictions. The state has also decided to open theaters from Monday. Theaters are allowed to operate with 50 percent of the seats. The permission was given at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister MK Stalin.

With these concessions, the lockdown in Tamil Nadu has been extended till September 6. The government has announced that schools and colleges will be reopened from September 1. Schools for classes IX to XII will be open from September 1. And colleges will open. Before the opening of schools and colleges, teachers and other staff at the school will ensure that both doses of the vaccine are received.

Before the opening of schools and colleges, teachers and other staff at the school will ensure that both doses of the vaccine are received. Polytechnic colleges are also allowed to open along with it. Schools will be open to students in grades nine through 12 in the first phase, but will also be open to students in grades one through eight after September 15. The decision will be made after evaluating the circumstances.