Lok Sabha elections: GCC chooses 21 disability ambassadors to promote accessible elections
In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has chosen persons with disabilities (PwDs) as ambassadors for the 21 disability categories to ensure accessible elections. The problems faced by PwDs were highlighted by the ambassadors during the training programme conducted for the polling officers in Chennai.
Accordingly, the GCC has also planned to ferry the PwDs to polling stations through a mobile van service. As part of the voting exercise, the GCC has planned to take the mobile vans with a model electronic voting machine to the three Parliamentary constituencies in Chennai and the ambassadors will be part of this exercise.
Source: The Hindu
DigiYatra to be rolled out in Chennai Airport this week
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) have said that the trial runs for DigiYatra have been underway for the past few weeks. Since they have not found any glitches, they are planning to roll it out to the passengers this week. The DigiYatra is aimed at reducing the waiting time at the entry and security check areas and allowing passengers to quickly and seamlessly finish the procedures necessary before boarding a flight. Initially, DigiYatra is to be made available at the domestic terminal. Despite the facility being available in other airports for almost six years now, a few passengers took to social media expressing disappointment over how they were persuaded to use the facility. The Chennai Airport authorities have assured that they will not compel the passengers to use it.
Source: The Hindu
Read more: When seconds matter: All about medical emergency services at Chennai Airport
CMWSSB urges the public to pay water and sewage taxes by March 31
The Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) has urged the public to pay drinking water and sewage taxes by March 31, failing which a surcharge will be levied. To facilitate the public to pay the taxes before the deadline, all the CMWSSB collection centres in Chennai will be functional between 10 am and 3 pm on March 31 (Sunday). The CMWSSB will accept payments via cheques and demand drafts in the name of CMWSSB, credit card, debit card, and net banking. Facilities have also been made for E-services and UPI, QR code-based payments.
Source: DT Next
Chennai may get hotter in April
With the residents of Chennai starting to feel the scorching summer, the forecast experts say that the day temperatures could rise by 2°C to 3°C over coastal areas including Chennai and its suburbs. By the end of April, Chennai may reach up to 40°C, say the private forecasters, while bloggers think that the temperature would reach up to 35°C by April end in Chennai. Meanwhile, the IMD says that they expect a temperature rise of 2°C to 3°C over coastal areas during the second half of April following the historical pattern.
Source: Times of India
Read more: Why Chennai needs to put its ‘heat action plan’ to practice right away
Study reveals unauthorised construction rose by 59% between 2007 and 2019 in 3 wards of Chennai
Aimed to develop a database of streets and different types of buildings; photos and details of ground elevation and identification of buildings constructed before 1999 to 2019, in correlation with rules applicable during the particular period, a study was conducted in three wards (Kilpauk, Royapettah and Adyar) of Chennai by Sakura Geo-Information Software Research Private Ltd. This study found that Kilpauk had the highest number of unauthorised constructions.
The majority of violations were observed in buildings constructed between 2007 and 2019 in both Royapettah and Adyar. Notably, the number of violations captured by aerial vehicles stood at 48% in Adyar, 53.8% in Royapettah and 22% in Kilpauk even after 2019. Overall, the number of unauthorised constructions raised between 2007 and 2019 increased by 59%. This shows the ineffectiveness of the enforcement cell.
Source: The New Indian Express