Articles by News Desk

Delhi bans diesel gensets as AQI tanks Delhi reported an AQI (air quality index) between 82 and 268 on October 28th, coaxing The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to ban the use of diesel generator sets and enhancing parking fees by up to four times in Delhi-NCR. These measures were listed under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), according to an official order. According to an assessment by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Delhi is under threat of an air quality emergency as stubble fires are expected to peak during Diwali, when air pollution levels generally rise.  “Actions…

BMTC app to be relaunched in four months The BMTC (Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation) app to track buses will be relaunched on February 26, 2022, with a new ITS (Intelligence Transport System). The project, funded by the Nirbhaya scheme, had been delayed due to COVID, said BMTC MD V Anbukumar. The app would give a range of information, from vehicle tracking to driver behaviour, seat occupancy and CCTV footage. Meanwhile, a study by the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP) showed that, assuming 30% electric vehicle (EV) penetration within BBMP limits, there will be a demand for…

Metro to issue QR code-based tickets The Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) is set to issue QR code-based tickets that will enable contactless travel. The QR code is to be printed on paper tickets. The Metro currently uses a token system where the reusable tokens are sanitised after each use.  The QR code-based tickets will also ensure adherence to COVID safety norms as customers no longer have to handle the tokens. The tickets can also be printed at ticket vending machines unlike the tokens which are issued only at counters. Trials are ongoing for the seamless rollout of QR code-based…

Central Railway may stop issuing daily Mumbai local train tickets The Railways may stop issuing daily tickets for Mumbai local trains. This comes a day after the state government issued an order allowing fully vaccinated citizens to travel through local trains by issuing only monthly, quarterly, and half-yearly passes.  "We might not issue daily tickets to anyone. Yet we are still having internal discussions on the same before we finalize the same," a railway official told The Free Press journal.  Source: Indian Express, The Free Press Journal 14 more bridges in Mumbai to undergo repairs After the collapse of the…

CBSE announces Term 1 examination schedule for Classes 10 and 12  The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) this week released the date sheet or timetable for students of Classes 10 and 12 who will be writing the Term 1 papers of the Board examination 2021-22. The first term board exams for class 10 will begin on November 30th, while the exams for class 12 are scheduled to commence on December 1st. This date sheet is only for the major subjects, while the schedule for minor subjects has been communicated to the schools separately. Practical exams or internal assessment will…

Corporation evicts pavement dwellers in Egmore The Greater Chennai Corporation evicted close to 50 families who had been residing on the pavement close to Egmore Railways station. The families allege that they had been given no notice of the move and that their belongings had been bundled and taken away. The evicted families were residents of Egmore for close to five decades. After the eviction they are currently housed in a Corporation shelter near Pattalam with the promise of permanent housing in 10 days. The evicted families returned to the site of their shanties the following day and staged a…

Mumbai registers zero COVID-19 deaths for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic After 18 months and 3 weeks, Mumbai recorded no COVID-19 deaths on a single day on October 17th. "Mumbai recorded zero Covid deaths after March 26, 2020. This is great news for all of us in Mumbai. I salute Team MCGM (Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai) for their spectacular performance," I S Chahal, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner told news agency ANI. Even before the second wave of the pandemic hit the country, Mumbai had already reported more than 25% of the country’s total number…

BBMP schools to reopen primary sections BBMP schools will resume classes for grades I to V from Monday, October 25. No online classes were held for these students in the past one-and-half years; teachers only interacted with the students who accompanied their parents to collect rations from school, said an education department official. The teachers and non-teaching staff have been fully vaccinated, the official added. The 16 civic-run primary schools will be sanitised over the weekend. The strength of students in classes I to V will be ascertained once physical classes resume. Source: The Hindu Read more: The reality of…

Fuel prices hiked again, petrol costs Rs 110 in Pune, CNG Rs 62 Petrol prices rose again after a break of two days, with a litre of diesel now at Rs 99.36 and petrol at Rs 110.25. CNG price, thought to be stable, too were hiked to Rs 62.10 in Pune on October 14, the second hike this month. The government justified the regular hikes in fuel prices by saying it needed to raise revenue to fund the free COVID-19 vaccination programme. The continuous hike in fuel prices is affecting transportation costs. Transport associations have appealed to the central government…

Houses, airport flooded The overnight rain of 18 cm between Monday night and Tuesday morning is the highest ever that the Met observatory at KIA (Kempegowda International Airport) recorded since it was set up in 2011. The roads leading to KIA were waterlogged due to the heavy rains on Monday night. Hence cabs and private vehicles were stranded, forcing some to depend on alternative modes of transport, even a tractor. BIAL (Bangalore International Airport Limited) sources said that 20 departing flights between 5.30 pm and 11.59 pm were delayed due to weather conditions. Heavy rains also flooded scores of houses…