City: Chennai

What is a Master Plan? Many of us complain that Chennai has grown ‘unplanned’. Technically that is not true. Chennai has been having various ‘plans’ guiding the expansion of the city since 1957. The First Master Plan for Chennai was published in 1975. Both the transport terminal and  wholesale market from Central Business District were shifted to the current CMBT and Koyambedu Market as a strategy to decongest the Central Business District then. So the master plan matters. The Second Master Plan was published in 2008 - this plan is a guiding document till 2026, another 8 years from now.…

How many of us know that a Chennaiite won the National Championship title last month, by solving the 3×3 Rubik’s cube with his feet in 40.81 seconds?   The 20-year-old  student of Electronics and Instrumentation engineering from Madras Institute of Technology, Chrompet won the National Championship in the speed cubing competition conducted at IIT-Bombay between 25 and 27 May this year. Around 300 speedcubers from all over the country had taken part in the competition. Most of us are familiar with the Rubik’s cube. You will find one in most homes that have children but often we hesitate to try…

Metro Rail to ensure last mile connectivity For any mass rapid system to succeed, it needs to ensure last mile connectivity, and  Chennai Metro Rail (CMRL) is very aware of this fact. In a few months from now, CMRL  will run share autos along its network, and will soon call for tenders. “We plan to give a contract to the lowest bidding firm, to ply share autos to stations along our elevated and underground stretches. It will most likely be Tata Magic vans that would be operated through our network,” an official said Meanwhile, Metro has seen a dip in…

Chennai Metro Rail stations wear a festive look now, with citizens from all quarters and strata of society thronging the various stations of the city. Happy faces of citizens and positive feedback accompany the never-before- seen crowds at the various Metrorail stations. "It is an engineering marvel. The train entering and exiting the tunnel is really awesome at Saidapet Bridge with River Adyar in the background. The stations are compact and well made", said C R Balaji, a citizen activist. Thanks to Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL)'s decision to offer free rides, to celebrate the inauguration of the two stretches…

Hemraj, a youth in his mid twenties, hails from Royapuram, in North Chennai, which is a neglected area in terms of development or infrastructure compared to other parts of the city. From street light malfunction to free flow of sewage to handling simple checks by the police, Hemraj says he had no clue how to resolve all them and whom to approach, until he started volunteering with a civic-action group, Arappor Iyakkam. Citizen movements across the city are growing and are becoming a powerful tool to resolve civic issues and what is heartening is that these citizen movements are now…

As a small group of volunteers walked though the snaking pathway that led through Urur Kuppam to the stretch of Elliot’s beach near the Broken Bridge, we spotted litter through the trek. There were styrofoam cups, packing material, plastic covers, PET bottles and pieces of glass strewn along the path. We were headed towards the shoreline by the bridge to collect waste for the Waste and Brand Audit, a pan-India initiative that was led by the Kuppai Matters platform in Chennai last Saturday. When we made our way past the bridge to the designated spot, Olaf, a German exchange student…

The Public Distribution System in Tamil Nadu (TNPDS), perceived as a boon to citizens from low income groups has many issues. Its nodal agency, the Civil Supplies department, has failed at various levels of operations -- issuing smart cards, easing  online procedures for correcting card information and distribution of the commodities. On one hand,  promises by the state government to complete issue of smart cards by March 1st this year have not been met and on the other, technical issues in the PDS centres are inconveniencing card holders. A reality check conducted by Citizen Matters in various PDS and E…

Two underground stretches of Metro Rail commence operation Commuters travelling to Chennai Central  from Annanagar can now take the Metro, as can travellers from Saidapet to DMS. Two new stretches of Chennai Metro were inaugurated by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and Union Minister Hardeep Singh from Egmore railway station.  A commuter who wants to travel from Chennai Central to Chennai airport or AG-DMS to Chennai airport will have to pay ₹70. The minimum fare is Rs.10/- and the maximum fare has now been revised to Rs. 70 Meanwhile, work is said to be in full swing to complete the…

A mid-January dawn in Chennai of UNESCO ‘heritage fame’, as margazhi kolams inch boisterously onto the centre of roads, roadside temples belt out loud religious music to the neighbourhoods. It is the run up to auspicious Thai and the bounteous Pongal festival. Only, the air of peaceful holiness is marred by the overflowing garbage bins everywhere around. Stranger still is that morning walkers, senior citizens, fitness enthusiasts etc., move around effortlessly, unseeing of the muck in every periphery of their vision!Interviewing conservancy workers whose job profile is to keep the streets of Chennai clean and free of garbage and litter…

How a like-minded citizens' group comes together to serve the needy in the summer I was waiting at a bus stop on Poonamalle High Road in the first week of May. The temperature reading on my mobile read 35 degrees celsius. The scorching heat had tired out everyone at the bus stop. Three young men came in a Bolero, that halted near the bus stop. One was carrying a 1 litre pack of butter milk  (‘more’ in Tamil) , while the other had smaller packs of 200 ml. The third one had coloured cards that were the size of postcards.…