Articles by Shobana Radhakrishnan

A 100 years ago, on May 1, Chennai observed May Day for the first time. A function was held in Marina Beach to mark the occasion. This was the first formal celebration of May Day in India. In the decades since, the living conditions of workers in the city has worsened and their rights have been eroded. Labour movements in Chennai have been raising their voice on behalf of the workers to ensure basic facilities and protections are granted to them. We speak with leaders of various labour movements in the city to understand what the workers of Chennai are…

Translated by Geetha Ganesh கடந்த சில தசாப்தங்களாக, வடசென்னை அதன் காற்று, நிலம் மற்றும் நீர் ஆகியவற்றை மாசுபடுத்துகிறது. வடசென்னையில் அதிகரித்து வரும் மாசுபாட்டிற்கு முக்கியக் காரணம் எண்ணூர்-மணலி பகுதியில் அரசுக்குச் சொந்தமான அனல் மின் நிலையம் உட்பட செயல்படும் முக்கியத் தொழில்கள்தான் என்று பல்வேறு அமைப்புகளின் ஆய்வுகள் தெரிவிக்கின்றன. மாசுபாடு வடசென்னையில் வசிக்கும் ஏராளமான மக்களின் வாழ்க்கையை பாதித்துள்ளது மற்றும் பலரின் வாழ்வாதாரத்தை சூறையாடியுள்ளது. மாசுபடுத்துபவர்கள் பொறுப்பேற்க வேண்டிய அதே வேளையில், தமிழ்நாடு மாசுக்கட்டுப்பாட்டு வாரியமான (TNPCB) ஒழுங்குமுறை ஆணையத்தையும் பொறுப்பேற்கச் செய்வது சமமாக முக்கியமானது. மாசுக் கட்டுப்பாட்டை கடைபிடிக்காத தவறு செய்யும் தொழிற்சாலைகள்/ஏஜென்சிகளுக்கு காரணம் காட்டுதல், சட்ட நடவடிக்கை எடுப்பது மற்றும் மூடுவதற்கான வழிகாட்டுதல்கள், மின்சாரம் மற்றும் நீர் விநியோகத்தை நிறுத்துதல் போன்ற பல்வேறு நடவடிக்கைகளால் மாசுபாட்டைக் கட்டுப்படுத்தும் கடமை TNPCB க்கு ஒப்படைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. சட்டங்கள், நிபந்தனைகள் மற்றும் தரநிலைகள். ஆனால் வடசென்னையின் நிலப்பரப்பில் ஆதிக்கம் செலுத்தும்…

Take a walk through any street in Chennai and you will find at least one wall filled with various posters announcing a new movie in the theatres, the obituary of a senior citizen in the locality and news of a political party meeting. What do posters say about life in the city? When do they cross the line from being informative to being a nuisance to the public? Posters as a source of knowledge Many in the city see posters as an eyesore. But that is not all that defines what posters add to the landscape of the city. "The…

"I came into politics to serve the public," says KV Thilagar, the Councillor of Ward 92 (Mogappair East) in Chennai. Thilagar's family has been in politics for generations. Even before becoming the elected representative, he has been helping the public address their grievances. "I have helped over 2,000 people in my area get their community certificates in the past. It has aided many youngsters in pursuing higher education," says Thilagar. He was a member of the Indian National Congress (INC) but made the decision to contest the urban local body elections as an independent candidate when the party decided to…

Take a drive along Keelkattalai to Kamatchi Memorial Hospital any time during the day, and you will see hundreds of water lorries parked on the radial road. This stretch, 80% of which falls under Kovilambakkam Panchayat and 20% within the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) limits, is a hub of illegal groundwater extraction — one of the root causes of Chennai’s water woes.As it happens, there are four or five legitimate water drawing points near the Keelkattalai lake, but the lorries do not use those points to extract water. “A black hose has been laid illegally,  2 to 3 km away…

The allegations of multiple instances of sexual harassment and abuse in Chennai's famed Kalakshetra highlights the need to look into mechanisms in place at educational institutions in Chennai to aid survivors and prevent the recurrence of such incidents. At present, the University Grants Commission (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal of sexual harassment of women employees and Students in higher educational institutions) Regulations, 2015. mandate every educational institution to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) to deal with the cases of sexual harassment of all women inside the campus. Unfortunately, many colleges in Chennai do not have a functioning ICC or take…

Over the past few decades, North Chennai has seen pollution taint its air, land and water. Studies by various organisations have shown that a key factor behind the rising pollution in North Chennai is the major industries that operate in the Ennore-Manali region, including the state-owned thermal power plant. Pollution has affected the lives of scores of residents in North Chennai and robbed many of their livelihoods. While the polluters should be held responsible, it is equally important to hold the regulator, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB), accountable. The TNPCB has been entrusted with the duty to curb…

Pritika has to travel from Royapuram to different parts of the city every day for work. Being a daily user of the government buses in Chennai, she says that she feels unsafe taking buses. "When I enter a bus, my dignity and sense of space are immediately taken away. I have to give up on the assumption that I can regulate the space around me. Women's safety in Chennai buses depends on the actions of the men on the bus. All that we can do is learn how to respond to such instances of harassment in public places. More often…

On Monday, March 20, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister, Dr Palanivel Thiaga Rajan presented the budget for 2023-24 in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. The budget has a slew of announcements in store for Chennai, with the focus firmly on infrastructure, health, skill development and river restoration.  Reduction in revenue deficit and an improvement in the Tax-GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) ratio were some key highlights of the budget. Improvement in these parameters is vital for the state to be able to implement its welfare schemes, many of which are being piloted in Chennai before their expansion across the state. Budget places…

Chennai saw the flood of the century in 2015. Four years on, in 2019, the city came to a standstill as the main reservoirs ran dry and Chennai hit 'Day Zero'. The city's fraught relationship with water has affected the lives of millions with no permanent solution in sight. In an interview with Citizen Matters Chennai, Dr S Janakarajan, the President of the South Asia Consortium for Interdisciplinary Water Resources Studies (SaciWATERs), Hyderabad and former Professor and Director at Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS), unpacks the issues with water management in Chennai that has led to both flooding and…