Chennai Corporation to acquire lands to widen roads
The Chennai Corporation will acquire land worth ₹2,829 crore from residents for widening of roads in congested parts of the city. The land to be acquired is estimated at 18.8 lakh sq ft, which is around 786 grounds.
Meanwhile, the Chennai Smart City Limited has put on hold a proposal to develop two bridges across Anna Salai. At a board meeting on Tuesday, the proposal to develop a bridge connecting Thyagaraya Road and Eldams Road was not cleared. Another bridge connecting Thanikachalam Road and Chamiers Road (Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar Salai) was also not cleared. Officials say that the projects have been put on hold.
Source: The Hindu
G N Chetty Road flyover will have a vertical garden soon
A vertical garden around the piers of the GN Chetty Road flyover is being planned at a cost of 32 lakhs. The proposal was ratified by the Chennai Smart City Limited board on Tuesday. According to corporation documents, the decision to develop a vertical garden was taken to prevent defacement to the piers by unscrupulous elements, who stick posters in the dead of the night. According to an official from the Corporation, this vertical garden will beautify the flyover and allow them to utilise space around the piers effectively. The project will be executed using the Smart City funds allocated for Chennai.
Source: The Times of India
Rs 100 crore allocated to mitigate Chennai floods
The state government on Friday sanctioned a Rs 100-crore proposal to take up flood mitigation projects in neighbouring Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts. Chief minister K Palaniswami made the announcement under assembly rule 110. Funds for the project, which will cover Adyar, Cooum, Kosasthalaiyar, Kovalam and Arani river basins, will be drawn from the state’s coffers. The chief minister has assured that steps are being taken to provide vulnerable areas with infrastructure that can drain flood water without obstruction.”
Source: The Times of India | Business Standard
Chennai water situation may not be as scary as Niti Aayog warns
Strongly disagreeing with Niti Aayog’s recent statement that Chennai would be among the 21 cities in the country to run out of groundwater by 2020, Santha Sheela Nair, a former civil servant, says that the situation is not as alarming as it is made out to be, if one is to go by the groundwater numbers of the city for the past 15 years.
“In 2003, when the city was in the midst of a huge water crisis, the average water level below the ground was around 5.6 metres. But, that was also the year people of the city started implementing RWH, going the whole hog. In three years, the level improved to 3.17 metres,” explains Ms. Nair, who promoted RWH during her stint as Chairman and Managing Director of Chennai Metrowater, and as Secretary in the Municipal Administration & Water Supply Department in the State government.
Source: The Hindu
Tamil Nadu hospitals to submit report on fire safety mechanism by July 6th
The Tamil Nadu government has asked the Joint Directors of health services to submit a report before July 6th regarding fire safety and regular preparedness for emergencies in all private and government hospitals. It is learnt that the PWD, Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services, Directorate of Town and Country Planning department, Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority, Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board, Electricity board and other departments have been asked to help the joint directors in submitting the report.
The report should focus on recommendations, compliance with fire safety guidelines, training to staff and other remedial measures and time required to overcome the gaps.
Source: The New Indian Express