Two explosions took place outside a nightclub in Sector 26, Chandigarh, in the wee hours of Tuesday, said officials.

The streets outside the Udaipur Palace looked deserted today after a royal family feud led to clashes last night over BJP MLA and the new Maharana of Mewar Vishvraj Singh Mewar being denied entry into the palace.

Vishvraj Singh, the BJP MLA from Rajsamand, had gone to offer prayers at temples managed by a trust run by his cousin Dr Lakshay Raj Singh and uncle Shreeji Arvind Singh Mewar. Denied entry into the city palace, where one of the temples is located, his supporters got angry and stone-pelting ensued.

The administration has now taken over the road that leads to the temple to allow Mr Singh to visit the temple with three-tier security.

“The district administration has moved to take the disputed site of Dhuni Mata Temple into receivership. If either of the two groups wants to register a case, it will be registered,” said District Collector Arvind Kumar Poswal.

Visuals from Udaipur this morning showed police barricades on empty streets adjacent to the palace. The road connecting the Janana Mahal and the Dhuni Mata temple has been sealed by the authorities.

Vishvraj Singh was recently anointed as the 77th Maharana of Mewar at a traditional coronation ceremony in the historic Chittorgarh Fort after the death of his father Mahendra Singh Mewar. After his symbolic coronation, he decided to seek blessings from his family deity, Dhuni Mata, whose temple is located inside the palace, and the Ekling Shiv temple about 50 km from Udaipur.

Since both temples are managed by the Shree Eklingji Trust, run by Arvind Singh Mewar, the administration had requested the Trust to allow a few erstwhile nobles inside the palace to visit the temple. They had also erected barricades, sensing that the situation could turn violent.

After Mr Singh was denied entry, his supporters got angry and tried to break the barricades and gate close to the gates. Stones were thrown from both sides as the situation escalated and at least three people were injured in the clashes.

The Maharana called the incident “unfortunate” and told reporters that disputes over properties should not hinder traditions.

Mr Singh stood with his supporters for hours and left late at night after requests from the administration. He told his supporters that the administration would take action in the morning and they have assured him of darshan. Calling for a peaceful protest, the titular Maharana appealed to his supporters not to take the law into their own hands and to return the next morning.

The Delhi government on Monday directed government, private and civic body-run schools to conduct classes in “hybrid mode” – online and offline – with immediate effect, after the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) announced relaxations under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to mitigate educational disruptions caused by poor air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR).

All schools in the NCR had shifted to online lessons on October 18 amid a deterioration in the air quality in the area. On Monday, the Supreme Court had asked the CAQM to consider restarting physical classes in schools and colleges, noting many students lacked mid-day meals and infrastructure to attend online classes.

“Clause 11 of GRAP Stage-III, Clause 5 of GRAP Stage-IV and Clause 8 of GRAP Stage-IV (to the extent it relates to colleges, educational institutions) are relaxed to the extent that State Govts in the NCR and GNCTD shall ensure that all classes upto 12th Standard in schools and those in colleges/educational institutions are conducted in a ‘hybrid’ mode, i.e, both in ‘physical’ and also in an ‘online’ mode, wherever online mode is feasible, in the territorial jurisdiction of the NCT of Delhi and in the districts of Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddh Nagar in the NCR. The option to exercise online mode of education, wherever available, shall vest with the students and their guardians,” a notification issued by the Directorate of Education (DoE), Government of Delhi, said.

“Accordingly, all Heads of Schools of Govt, Govt. Aided, Unaided Recognized Private Schools of DoE, NDMC (New Delhi Municipal Corporation), MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) and Delhi Cantonment Board are directed to ensure compliance of the above orders with immediate effect until further orders,” it added.

On Monday, the CAQM permitted educational institutions to operate classes in a “hybrid” format, allowing students to attend either in person or online. “All classes up to 12th standard in schools and those in colleges/educational institutions are to be conducted in a ‘Hybrid’ mode, i.e., both in ‘physical’ and ‘online’ mode, wherever online mode is feasible,” the CAQM announced.

The development came hours after the Supreme Court directed the CAQM to review GRAP restrictions in light of their impact on education. The court also emphasised the need to prioritise education while raising several concerns.

“A large number of students are being deprived of the facility of mid-day meals as schools and anganwadis are closed. A large number of students do not have the facilities to take advantage of online education. Many educational institutions do not have the facilities to provide online education,” the court said.

Additionally, the court observed, “The residences of many students do not have air purifiers, and therefore, there may not be any difference between children sitting at home and those attending school.”

The air quality remained alarming on Monday, with the Capital’s 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) reading soaring to 349 from 318 the previous day, according to the Central Pollution Control Board’s 4pm bulletin.