City: Chennai

At 16, when Jency* got married to a man her family chose for her, she dreamt of a blissful life. Her husband, a carpenter, toiled to make ends meet, while she was a homemaker. Life was tough but they were content. "During weekends, he would take us to the beach and once in a while we went to the movies. Eating Delhi appalam and walking along the seashore at Marina Beach with my husband and my two kids is one of my favourite happy memories," she says. That was Jency's life in the past. The sole breadwinner of her family,…

The Kilambakkam bus terminus has been marred by controversies ever since it opened to the public. Why was the terminus opened in such a hurry? Why did the CMDA award the contract for Operation and Maintenance to a single concessionaire? What is going to come up at the location of Koyambedu bus stand? Chennai residents are looking for answers to all these questions. To get a clear picture about the operations of the new terminus and put all controversies to rest, we spoke with CMDA Member Secretary, Anshul Mishra. Here is what the CMDA has to say about the issues.…

Voter awareness campaign begins in Chennai There are 39.01 lakh voters in Chennai. However, there is an urban apathy during elections in Parliamentary constituencies in the city, leading to low voter turnout. In a bid to increase electoral participation, especially among first-time voters, the government is planning to conduct various awareness programmes. As part of it, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Satyabrata flagged off three vehicles in Ripon Buildings to create awareness in the city’s three Parliamentary constituencies. The vehicles will carry electronic voting machines (EVMs) and voter-verified paper audit trails (VVPATs). Similarly, 'Pedal for Vote Cyclothon' was also flagged off…

The recent spurt of States announcing free public bus travel for women has led to much commentary on women freeloading off the hardworking men; of women roaming the streets with no purpose; of greater financial burden on transport undertakings who are already in the red; and of course, a general sense of this being unfair — why do only women get to travel free? To analyse these claims and assess the benefits and drawbacks of the fare-free bus scheme for women, Citizen consumer and civic Action Group (CAG) surveyed 3,000 women across six cities in Tamil Nadu, two years after…

It was a balmy day in a crowded antenatal clinic in the small town of Haliyal in Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka. The medical officer indicated to me that he was doing a great service to humanity by killing unborn girls. He would go to villages nearby, on a designated day once a month, to hold mobile clinics and conduct sex determination tests on pregnant women. If the results showed the unborn child was a girl, more often than not, the expectant mother — at her husband's family's behest — would come back to the clinic for an illegal abortion.…

With the operation of southbound buses shifted from Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus (CMBT) in Koyambedu to Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus (KCBT) in Kilambakkam, there is not much clarity about the bus services among commuters. Kavin, who lives in Arumbakkam, was one among those affected by the confusion over transition of the bus stand from Koyambedu to Kilambakkam. He booked a ticket to Dindigul in an Omni bus in January-end and chose the pick-up point as Vadapalani. The bus should have picked him up at the designated stop at 9 pm. At 8 pm, he got a call from the travel…

The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) budget for 2024-2025 was tabled before the council last week. The civic body’s focus in the budget this year is on enhancing physical infrastructure across schools, improving the soft skills of students, upgradation of facilities in health centres across the city and tackling issues with stray dogs and cattle.  The Ward Development Fund for each councillor has also been hiked from Rs 40 lakh per year to Rs 45 lakh. The discretionary fund can be spent by the councillors to fulfil the needs of their ward.  One of the highlights of this year's budget is…

Getting up early in the morning and picking up the Aavin milk packets delivered to our doorsteps or queuing up at milk booths are vignettes from everyday life that most long-time residents of Chennai have grown up with. But of late, the exercise of getting a regular supply of milk from the State-owned milk co-operative is riddled with obstacles. Many residents have been facing problems in renewing their monthly milk card subscriptions online.  People who are well-versed in using smartphones and other digital devices may not have any major issues in renewing their cards online. But it is not the…

Budget focuses on SWD development under Singara Chennai 2.0 The Greater Chennai Corporation's budget for 2024-25 has allocated ₹1,321 crore for constructing stormwater drains in the Kosasthalaiyar and Kovalam basins as part of the Singara Chennai 2.0 initiative. Mayor of Chennai R Priya presented the budget on Wednesday which focused on various schemes and programmes including road development, infrastructure, education, health and solid waste management. For relaying of roads around the city, ₹390 crore has been allocated under the Nagarpura Salai Mempattu Thittam (NSMT) and Singara Chennai 2.0 schemes. Many initiatives for school children were also announced. These include setting…

Obstructing pedestrians and commuters is an offence under Section 201 of the Motor Vehicles Act. Though the laws are spelt out, neither the local administration nor enforcement agencies have taken measures to implement the laws against illegal parking on roads and wrongful occupation of footpaths, in the interest of the public in Chennai.   Footpaths are usurped by restaurants, commercial establishments and street vendors to serve vested interests. Illegal parking on footpaths is rampant across our city and beyond. The local officials themselves seem to be ignorant of the rule of law, and claim that the footpath is owned by…