Articles by News Desk

There has been a spate of suicides by students in Chennai's colleges in recent months. Four students have died by suicide in a span of three months at IIT-Madras this year. The 2021 NCRB report states that one died by suicide every 42 minutes in India. Tamil Nadu had the third-highest number of instances of student suicide, which is 9.5% of total student suicides across India. Mental health support for students has been sorely lacking in institutions of higher education. Without adequate support and mechanisms to address grievances on college campuses, students are left to lonely and uphill battles by…

NGO accuses Greater Chennai Corporation of corruption Arappor Iyakkam, an anti-corruption NGO, has alleged that a decision by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) to build a community hall instead of renovating a Corporation Middle School in Ward 114 Chepauk involved corruption. The school in Ward 114 was supposed to undergo repairs and renovation, according to parents and teachers. Therefore the students were shifted to a nearby GCC school which did not have enough space to accommodate more students. The stakeholders believed that the arrangement would be temporary and the students will be shifted to their school when the work on…

Coastal road to open in phases from November The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) may open Mumbai's coastal road in phases starting from November this year. However, the project may take another six months to complete after works for the approved revised design, aimed at increasing the gap between two pillars near Worli Koliwada, are pending. Officials state that these delays have resulted in an additional cost of Rs 650 crore. In 2016, fisherfolk from Worli Koliwada raised objections to the short distance between the pillars of the coastal road, citing difficulties in the navigation of fishing boats. After years of…

Low voter turnout in city, highest in state According to the Election Commission data released on May 11th, the 11 constituencies, which saw the least polling in the Karnataka Assembly elections, were all in Bengaluru Urban district. Bommanhalli had the lowest turnout (47.22%), followed by Dasarahalli (48.07%) and C V Raman Nagar (49.07%). Hosakote constituency in Bengaluru Rural district had the highest voter turnout, with 90.33% polling. However, polling stood at 73.19%, the highest in the state since it was formed. Of the total eligible voters of 5.30 crores, 3.88 crores casted their vote on May 10th. A number of…

The 2023 Karnataka Assembly Elections will take place on May 10th. Here is a quick guide to help make the voting process as smooth as possible. Check voter rolls and find your polling booth information You can only vote from your designated polling booth in the constituency your ward falls under, and your name must be in the voting list or electoral roll. You can find your name and information about your polling booth in a number of ways. You can use the Voter Helpline app created by the Election Commission. You can search for your name in the electoral…

Contributors of greenhouse gas in Chennai identified Emissions from vehicles and railways have been found to contribute 16% of all greenhouse gas emissions in Chennai. The findings were tabled as part of a report on the Chennai Climate Action Plan (CCAP) drafted by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC). The report prepared by Deloitte has found that 66.4% of all motorised transport trips in the city are driven by fossil-fuel-based vehicles. The share of non-motorised transport in Chennai stands at 28%. To reduce emissions, the report suggests incentivising a switch to e-vehicles. The creation of infrastructure for charging and amendments to…

New Lower Parel bridge problem for Mumbai's dabbawalas The newly constructed bridge outside Lower Parel station has disrupted the daily routine of Mumbai's dabbawalas. Subhash Talekar, the President of the Mumbai Dabbawala Association (MDA), stated that the old bridge was more convenient as it had a footpath. However, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) demolished it and failed to provide a similar facility for the new bridge. The old bridge was spacious and had stairs, as well as wide footpaths, making it feasible for dabbawalas to exchange dabbas for areas such as Worli, Kalachowki, Byculla, and Mazgaon. To address their concerns,…

More candidates with criminal cases than in 2018 There are more candidates with declared criminal cases in all three parties after 2018. It has risen from 83 to 96 in the BJP, 59 to 122 among the Congress candidates, and 41 to 70 in the JD(S), according to the ‘Karnataka Assembly Elections 2023: Analysis of Criminal Background, Financial, Education, Gender and other Details of Candidates’ report, released by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).   Eight candidates have declared murder-related cases (IPC Section 302), 35 candidates have attempts to murder cases (Section 307), and 49 candidates have declared cases of crime against…

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its manifesto, on May 1st, for the upcoming Karnataka Assembly Elections. It lists 16 promises. They will provide three free cooking gas cylinders to all BPL families annually; one each during the months of Yugadi, Ganesh Chaturthi, and Deepavali. They will set up an Atal Ahara Kendra in every ward of every municipal corporation in the state to provide affordable, quality and healthy food across the state. They will launch the Poshane scheme through which every BPL household will be provided with half litre Nandini milk every day and 5 kg siri dhanya--through monthly…

GCC's bus shelter renovation project faces hurdles The Greater Chennai Corporation's (GCC) plan to renovate bus shelters across has been unable to take off due to a lack of bids. The civic body's plan to spruce up bus 844 bus shelters across Chennai was approved by the council in March. The aim was to ensure uniformity in the renovation and quality of the shelters through the adoption of a public-private partnership model. The total number of bus shelters in the city were divided into 12 corridors, with each corridor comprising 65 bus shelters. The tenders were called for renovation soon…