Spanish firm to keep Chennai clean
Chennai Corporation has issued work orders to a Spanish firm for conservancy operations in seven zones. The firm will be paid based on performance indicators and not based on the tonnage of waste, which has been introduced for the first time in the country.
The firm will take over collection and transportation of waste including doorstep collection, street sweeping and handling of domestic and hazardous waste for a period of eight years.
The key performance indicators framed by the Corporation include primary collection, street sweeping and collection, secondary collection and transportation and complaint redressal. Under these indicators, the firm will have to clear and disinfect bins to avoid overflowing of bins, replace broken or stolen bins within 24 hours, provide separate compartments in e-rickshaws for dry and wet waste, ensure timely sweeping and redressal of complaints within six hours. In all, the Corporation has set 34 key indicators to monitor performance.
Source: The New Indian Express
Chennai Corporation plans to appoint ‘secret agents’
Soon children from Chennai city can turn into 007 to help the city corporation with reports of flaws in civic infrastructure and earn points in exchange. Tentatively christened ‘Chennai’s Secret Agent X‘, the app is targeted at adolescents or anyone who wishes to be part of the initiative.
While this is a fun game for children, it also allows the Corporation to crowd-source information that it expects to come in handy, especially during disasters. The app will run zone-specific or city-wide campaigns. For instance, participants may click photos of potholes, illegal banners and unusable toilets, and upload them on the app. The more potholes they report, the more points they get.
Those with the highest number of points will be featured in the app’s leaderboard tentatively titled, ‘The city’s best secret agents.” The app will be available for downloads within a month, according to corporation officials.
Source: The New Indian Express
Chennai Police to deploy additional force to ensure accident-free New year eve
Chennai Police have made elaborate arrangements to ensure an accident-free New Year eve. The department has planned 35 patrol teams, 410 checkpoints and deploy 15000 police personnel.
CCTV cameras, drones and watch towers will be used to monitor the crowds and women police will be deployed at places where women will gather in large numbers. Police have also instructed hotels and clubs to check the vehicles entering their premises and the ID proof of customers.
Source: The Times of India
Eight more areas to get underground sewer lines by mid-2020
Chennai Metro water is working to add eight more areas to the underground sewer network as part of “Illam thorum Inaaipu” scheme announced in October by the Chief Minister.
Over one lakh residents at Tiruvootiyur, Manali, Madhavaram, Ambattur, Valsaravakkam, Alandur, Perungudi and Sholinganallur will benefit from this scheme. Metro water officials have said that the work has already commenced, and by the end of June 2020, most of the new areas will have this facility.
Source: The Times of India
CMRL to offer new ticketing options soon
CMRL will add new ticketing options in its existing mobile app, to avoid long queues at Metro counters. The metro smartcards can be linked to mobiles to check balance and recharge. The officials also said that passengers will have options to collect paper tickets with QR code, just like air tickets, that can be swiped at the AFC gates.
Meanwhile, Chennai Metro has installed a multi-level parking facility on trial basis, at the Meenambakkam Metro. The two-wheeler parking facility can hold about 20 motorcycles. Meenambakkam Metro has a footfall of nearly 2,500 on a daily basis and its parking lot has a capacity of 200 to 250 vehicles.
Once the safety parameters are tested and met to satisfactory levels, the facility is expected to be extended to Vadapalani metro and other stations gradually.
Source: The Times of India | The Hindu
[Compiled by Sandhya Raju]