City: Chennai

The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) implemented the Solid Waste Management Rules in 2016. The following year, it passed directions for bulk waste generators (including apartment complexes and gated communities) in Chennai to process their waste inside their premises. "Seven years down the line, very few bulk waste generators in Chennai are following the norms," points out P Natarajan, Founder of Namma Ooru Foundation in our earlier article. KGEYES Homes in Chennai's Besant Nagar is a 25-year-old residential complex with 36 dwelling units. Similar to many other apartment complexes in the neighbourhood, residents here did not adhere to the waste management…

For years, long-time residents of Chennai, who bought plots in a suburban township in Tharapakkam, had to endure many hardships before they could rightfully claim their land. However, they did not give up. And now, there is a glimmer of hope as the persistence of the landowners has borne fruit. The local panchayat has also agreed to extend support, so that they can build their dream homes. In 2006, EVP Housing Pvt Ltd released colour advertisements in newspapers and distributed flyers offering plots for sale in Tharapakkam. These plots would form a township known as the EVP Township, situated five…

Source segregation of waste was a relatively new phenomenon in Chennai six years ago. Today, awareness and support of the process have only grown, but not without tireless citizen-led efforts. The Residents of Kasturba Nagar Association (ROKA) started its waste segregation programme in 2019, and improved their system, taking lessons from a neighbourhood initiative in Bengaluru. Now, other neighbourhoods in Chennai seek advice from ROKA on how to set up their own waste segregation systems. ROKA launched the ‘We Segregate’ programme in October 2023. The goal is to provide the systems and technology necessary to segregate waste in Kasturba Nagar…

Chennai was one of the first cities in India to get selected under the Smart City Mission. The objective of the ambitious Central Government programme was to promote cities that provide core infrastructure and give a decent quality of life to its citizens; a clean and sustainable environment and application of ‘smart’ solutions. But, the benefits of the programme for Chennai residents have been limited. While projects like the bicycle lanes and vertical gardens were a failure, the multi-level parking scheme remains underutilised. In April this year, when we spoke to a few experts on the Smart City projects implemented…

The atmosphere is lively on a summer Friday evening at the Kathipara Urban Square in Chennai. Despite the oppressive heat and humidity of the coastal city, people find relief in the evening breeze. They are milling about at open café tables, grabbing ice cream, browsing a used book store, or watching their children play on the swings. A toy train circles the plaza, while metro trains and cars speed on the lanes above. This multi-use urban square is situated beneath a busy elevated road junction adjacent to a major metro station. Envisaged as a multi-modal transit hub by the Chennai…

Chennai generates as much as 6,300 metric tonnes of garbage every day. Of this, 60% of the waste is biodegradable — which means that if we segregate the waste properly at source this 60% could be prevented from going to the landfills and eventually turning into legacy waste. Like any other metro city, Chennai also faces many challenges in the management of solid waste. The first part of this series delved into the challenges that Chennai faces in segregating waste at source. In the second part, Dr J Radhakrishnan, Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner, talks to Citizen Matters about various issues…

Vasanthi Kannan resides in a Kodambakkam apartment complex with eight units. She has spent nearly three decades as a civic activist, tirelessly advocating for household waste segregation. Despite her efforts, she remains the sole resident in her building, who segregates waste, before handing it over to the sanitation workers. In Pulianthope, a locality with 2,000 households, adherence was the issue. "The government distributed two bins to every household in 2020 and asked the residents to segregate the waste before handing it to sanitation workers. Initially, there was some compliance, but without strict enforcement, the initiative failed," says Selavaraj M, Founder…

In recent years, the resettlement sites in Chennai have become areas of concern due to many infrastructure and safety challenges affecting their residents. People in resettlement sites like Perumbakkam, Semmencherry, Kannagi Nagar, and other places grapple with problems of inadequate water supply, deteriorating housing quality, insufficient police presence, lack of streetlights and so on. In Part 2 of the two-part series on women-led safety audits of resettlement sites, we look at the findings of the recent audits and recommend improvements and policy changes.         Here are some of the key findings of the safety and infrastructure audits in the resettlement…

Safety is a fundamental necessity for all, particularly for women, children, young people, elders, persons with disabilities, gender-diverse groups, and other vulnerable sections of society. This basic need fosters a sense of inclusion and enables active participation in family, community, and societal activities. Enhanced safety promotes mobility, physical and mental wellness, employability and financial independence. It supports autonomy in decision-making, including decisions related to reproductive health. It also encourages increased social engagement and participation in governance. Improved safety in personal, professional, and community spaces works as a catalyst for empowerment and reduces systemic gender disparities. In Part 1 of a…

Sameena Selvam, a first-time Councillor represents Ward 188 of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC). Getting into politics was not easy and she was expecting to navigate the space with the support of her late husband C Selvam. A DMK party worker, Selvam was killed in 2022. “After his death, I continued on his behalf,” she recalls. "Everyone assured me of their support, including the party and the MLA." Madipakkam ward stretches from Ram Nagar to Madipakkam. Once a small village panchayat, Madipakkam is now part of GCC and has become a bustling neighbourhood. This area has grappled with inundation during…