Rescue and recovery operations continued on 1 December after Cyclone Ditwah brushed past Tamil Nadu’s coast over the weekend. While Sri Lanka bore the brunt of the storm—with 355 dead and 366 missing—India’s southern business hubs also felt the impact. The India Meteorological Department said the system had weakened into a deep depression about 50 km off Chennai but warned of residual heavy rain for Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh.
Chennai International Airport—the state’s primary gateway for multinational corporations and the region’s electronics and automobile clusters—cancelled more than 50 regional flights on 29–30 November. Airport authorities told Reuters that scheduled operations resumed on 1 December, though airlines advised passengers to confirm status and expect rolling delays while backlogs clear. Rail freight and passenger trains linking Chennai, Bengaluru and the port of Tuticorin were also temporarily halted but have restarted under speed restrictions.
![Cyclone Ditwah disrupts South India travel; flights gradually resume as storm weakens]()
For corporate mobility managers the immediate priorities are employee safety checks, re-booking of missed itineraries and monitoring of road conditions to Sri City, Mahindra World City and other industrial parks. Travel insurers note that most policies treat weather cancellations as a covered event, enabling refunds or date changes without penalty.
The event underscores how climate-driven weather volatility can upend both domestic and international travel plans at short notice. Companies with large assignee populations in Chennai are revisiting business-continuity protocols, including alternative routing through Bengaluru or Hyderabad and the use of hybrid-work arrangements when airports close.
India’s civil-aviation ministry has asked carriers to waive rescheduling fees for journeys disrupted between 29 November and 2 December. With the storm expected to dissipate by early Tuesday, normal operations should return quickly, but logistics experts caution that cargo backlogs at Chennai and Ennore ports could take several days to clear.
Chennai International Airport—the state’s primary gateway for multinational corporations and the region’s electronics and automobile clusters—cancelled more than 50 regional flights on 29–30 November. Airport authorities told Reuters that scheduled operations resumed on 1 December, though airlines advised passengers to confirm status and expect rolling delays while backlogs clear. Rail freight and passenger trains linking Chennai, Bengaluru and the port of Tuticorin were also temporarily halted but have restarted under speed restrictions.
For corporate mobility managers the immediate priorities are employee safety checks, re-booking of missed itineraries and monitoring of road conditions to Sri City, Mahindra World City and other industrial parks. Travel insurers note that most policies treat weather cancellations as a covered event, enabling refunds or date changes without penalty.
The event underscores how climate-driven weather volatility can upend both domestic and international travel plans at short notice. Companies with large assignee populations in Chennai are revisiting business-continuity protocols, including alternative routing through Bengaluru or Hyderabad and the use of hybrid-work arrangements when airports close.
India’s civil-aviation ministry has asked carriers to waive rescheduling fees for journeys disrupted between 29 November and 2 December. With the storm expected to dissipate by early Tuesday, normal operations should return quickly, but logistics experts caution that cargo backlogs at Chennai and Ennore ports could take several days to clear.
