City: Chennai

The quest for water deepens With storage levels at all the reservoirs in the red, Chennai Metro has started drawing from the dead storage from Redhills. The situation is so grim that the water board has started tapping the minimal storage of 328 million cubic feet (mcft), which is only 10% of its capacity of 3,300 mcft. Chembarambakkam reservoir is nearly bone dry and withdrawal is possible only for 10 days, given the current situation. Metrowater has already started pumping 30 mld of water from Cholavaram lake since early this week and this is expected to continue till mid-April. Meanwhile,…

In the financial year 2016 -17, the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation Limited (TASMAC), a liquor entity owned by the state government had a turnover of Rs 31, 247.53 Crore and earned a profit of Rs 25.23 crores as mentioned in its annual report. This was after temporarily closing 3321 TASMAC outlets following the Supreme Court’s order of relocating the shops, situated within a distance of 220 meters from the highways. But while the government that is reaping crores of rupees in profits from liquor sales, is it doing quite enough to rehabilitate addicts? Tamil Nadu is among the top…

Tambaram, a bustling suburban pocket has witnessed steady growth in its economy and population over the last three decades. With the increase in population, the pressure on the groundwater table has been tremendous. During the 2015 flash floods, a majority of water bodies in the suburb including Mudichur lake flooded their banks, creating a crisis that speaks about the mismanagement of the lakes and ponds. Now, TAKE Solutions that delivers domain intensive services in Life Sciences and Supply Chain Management has taken up restoration work in three ponds in the suburb as part of their CSR Project. TAKE solutions collaborated…

Translated by Sandhya Raju பொய்த்து போன மழையினாலும் வெகுவாக குறைந்து வரும்  நிலத்தடி நீராலும்  கோடை காலம் வரும் முன்னரே தண்ணீர் தட்டுப்பாட்டை சென்னை மக்கள் உணர ஆரம்பித்து விட்டார்கள்.  சென்னை குடிநீர் வாரியமமும் ஒரு நாள் விட்டு ஒரு நாள் தான் தண்ணீர் விநியோகம் செய்யும் நிலையில் உள்ளது. சென்னையின் மேற்கு மற்றும் வடக்கு பகுதி மக்கள் தண்ணீர் கிடைக்காமல் ஏற்கனவே அவதி படுகின்றனர். இந்த தட்டுப்பாட்டை சமாளிக்க புது யுக்தியை கையாள வேண்டிய கட்டாயத்திற்கு மக்கள் தள்ளப்பட்டுள்ளனர். 2000-ம் ஆண்டின் மத்தியில் மழை நீர் சேகரிப்பு திட்டம் சென்னையில் செயல் படுத்தப்பட்டாலும், பொய்த்து போன பருவ மழையால் இந்த திட்டத்தின் பலனை உணர முடியாமல் போனது.  உபயோகித்த தண்ணீரை மறுசுழற்சி செய்யும் முறை சமீப காலமாக பிரபலமாகி வருகிறது. இந்த முறையால்  நீரின் தேவையும் குறைகிறது. அதிக முதலீடு இல்லாமல் இந்த மறுசுழற்சி முறையை எளிதாக செயலாக்க…

Chennai ready to brace yellow Amidst the election fervor, Chennaites will start bleeding yellow from today as the country catches cricket fever with the commencement of the IPL 2019. Euphoria is high especially in the city as sport-loving Chennaites did not get a chance to witness any matches in a home ground in the last season due to political unrest. The defending champion CSK will take on RCB on the first day (March 23rd). Southern Railway has announced special services between Chennai beach station and Velachery on March 23rd and March 31st. Source: The Times of India Day Zero threat…

On World Water Day, conservation is the buzzword. The Internet is flooded with tips on how to conserve water and the need to focus on water as a scarce resource. Many resident welfare associations in Chennai are organising awareness sessions to educate people about water economics. But, ironically perhaps, World Water Day this year has come just a day after Holi, exposing the huge gaps in awareness and responsibility among many sections of the people, still. Just a day ago, the city celebrated Holi in a grand manner, but wasted gallons of water in the process, creating artificial rain. “The…

The iconic Chennai Photo Biennale is drawing to a close this weekend. The event that showcases the work of 50 artists from 13 countries across the world has seen yet another successful run and will end on March 24, 2019.  A myriad activities that were part of the schedule included film screenings, workshops, interaction with artists and skill training. This year's exhibition saw the opening up of the exquisite Senate House to the public through the efforts of the organisers. With the Biennale winding up, here is what you can catch in the next few days! Biennale roundup Guided tours…

Move over. I hear the flowers whispering to the colours with their mild scent wafting through the air, symbolizing a rather straitlaced demeanour - Holier than thou. After all our festivals are replete with symbolism and rituals. Holi, the festival of colours, is no exception, as it signifies greyish winter coming to an end, heralding vividly colourful spring with a burst of blooms of different hues. Typically Holi, as we know, is celebrated with dry or wet synthetic colours aided by water balloons and Pichkaris. But did you know traditionally the colours were made from flowers? ''Palash" or Flame of…

Pushing a green-coloured tricycle in the blazing humid sun, Raju (name changed), a conservancy worker, blows the whistle at Prashanti Colony of Madambakkam. The high pitched sound is an alarm for the residents to wake up from their afternoon nap and bring their waste out to the tricycle. Men and women rush out of their houses, with at least four bags of rotten waste each and start screaming at the worker. “You haven’t showed up in four days. There are no bins in the locality. What do you expect me to do with the waste,” screams one lady. What this…

“There has been a 20 percent increase in patients admitted for alcohol and drug abuse this year, as compared to 2007,” says Dr Poorna Chandrika, Deputy Superintendent, Institute of Mental Health. “Alcohol and drug related crimes are on the rise in Chennai. In over 25 percent of criminal cases in Chennai, the offender was inebriated during or before the crime,” says V Kannadasan, a criminal lawyer, practising in Madras High Court. The above data signify two things: one, the number of citizens falling prey to alcoholism and other substance abuse is clearly on the rise and that this may well…