Articles by News Desk

GCC to create 28 new playgrounds In a welcome move, Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has planned to construct 28 new playgrounds with several amenities across the city. It would be made free for the public. A sum of Rs 29.4 crore has been allotted to construct the playgrounds.  Ten of these playgrounds will come up in the first phase of the project. In a bid to make it more accessible for people from the economically-weaker sections, the GCC has planned to set up these grounds near Urban Habitat Development Board colonies. As a pilot, a playground has been created near the KP…

Stepping into the 76th year of Independence, India now has 75 wetlands that have got the coveted Ramsar site tag. After a gap of 20 years, Tamil Nadu has got the Ramsar tag for 13 wetlands across the State in 2022. This makes Tamil Nadu the State with the highest number of Ramsar sites in India.  Pallikaranai marshland in Chennai has become the first wetland in the city to get the Ramsar tag. What is a Ramsar site? A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, also known as "The Convention…

I-Day rush on BMTC On Independence Day, Namma Metro recorded the highest-ever ridership of 8.25 lakh, mainly due to the ‘freedom march’ organised by the Congress, as well as the visitors of the Lalbagh flower show. BMRCL (Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited) officials said that 4.02 lakh passengers travelled on the Green Line connecting Nagasandra in the northwest to Silk Institute in the southwest; 2.05 lakh on the Purple Line linking Baiyappanahalli in the east with Kengeri in the southwest and over 1.65 lakh using the interchange station at Majestic. BMRCL ran close to 170 trips on Monday, which was more…

Maximum pothole complaints reported from Western suburbs Data from Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), a day after a couple lost their lives to a pothole accident, at a carriageway flyover on the WEH opposite the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), showed that nearly 48% of total pothole-related complaints have been raised from Mumbai’s western suburbs in 2022. “The WEH is being maintained by MSRDC and Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). The WEH along with the adjoining service road is infamous for potholes, however, it’s not BMC’s responsibility to maintain them. Whenever we receive any complaint we forward it to the responsible agencies,”…

Greater Chennai Corporation cracks whip on unauthorised hoardings The civic body removed 1705 unauthorised hoardings out of a total of 1800 hoardings across the city. The frames that hold these hoardings were also removed. Thiru vi ka Nagar had the most number of illegal hoardings with 355. Around 200 hoardings in the zones of South Chennai, including Perungudi, Sholinganallur and Alandur were also removed. Manali had the least number of unauthorised hoardings, with only 10 hoardings in the Zone. This initiative was part of the mass cleaning drive organised in Chennai, which saw the participation of 877 volunteers and 133…

Madhavaram bus terminus to become a net zero emission zone soon The Madhavaram Mofussil Bus Terminus (MMBT) in Chennai is set to become the first terminus to earn the “Net Zero Carbon Emission” status in Tamil Nadu. Member-Secretary of Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA), Anshul Mishra, said that the bus terminus would completely switch to green energy. A study on offsetting carbon emission by opting for an on-grid solar power plant system and achieving net zero carbon emission status for the terminus was recently completed by CMDA. Following the success of the project, Kilambakkam and Kuthambakkam bus termini will also…

Gearing up for 75th I-Day The government is paving the way for the 75th Independence Day celebrations at Field Marshal Manekshaw Parade Ground, in which a hundred COVID-19 warriors, including healthcare professionals, frontline workers and 25 recovered patients are special invitees. To celebrate the silver jubilee of the BMTC (Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation), it has decided to give free services of all types of buses on Independence Day.  Meanwhile, authorities scramble to meet their flag sales targets two days before the Har Ghar Tiranga programme. The BBMP has been asked to sell 15 lakh machine-made polyester national flags, each for…

BBMP ward reservations announced The government announced the notification for the reservation of all 243 BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) wards. Objections can be filed in writing, from the date of notification up to a week, to the Urban Development Department at Vikasa Soudha. A significant number of the BBMP wards have been reserved for Backward Classes and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. Of the 243 seats, 81 seats have been reserved for the OBC, 28 for the SC and four for the ST communities. A total of 130 seats have been reserved for the candidates from the…

More air quality monitors to be set up in Chennai To check the air pollution levels in the city more efficiently, five more Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS), budgeted at Rs 7.08 crores are likely to be set up across the city. Four stations would be placed in industrial and residential areas, while one would be at the seat of the civic body at Ripon Building. A decision on the locations will be arrived at by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB). The Fifteenth Finance Commission has released Rs 91 crores for the city under the National Clean Air…

Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease on the rise in Navi Mumbai Out of about 100 cases in the OPDs across Navi Mumbai, 50 are of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD). A sudden rise in cases in the city has concerned officials since HFMD cases could be confused with monkeypox, chickenpox and measles.  “The blisters look similar to those seen during chickenpox. So, it is important to sensitise the parents, general practitioners as well as school authorities about the difference in these blisters that could be largely HFMD. We do not have any monkeypox cases yet. Measles is also not found. Chickenpox,…