City: Chennai

The Chitlapakkam Lake has been catering to the needs of agricultural lands and residents of Chitlapakkam by supplying an abundance of water for decades. The lake has seen what was once a sparsely populated area turning into a fast-growing suburb over the years.  The availability of clean water and air attracted many to Chitlapakkam and has catalysed its urbanisation, with the lake at its centre. From the 1970s to the 1990s, the lake witnessed the area’s explosive growth as more and more people made Chitlapakkam their home. As pollution and encroachment had not been major issues, the lake was able…

Sundaram* and his wife Latha*, senior citizens from Chennai's Ambattur, both over 80 years of age, fell victim to a burglary in broad daylight in November last year.  The couple had only just moved to Ambattur from Thiruvanmiyur a few months before the incident. Their son and daughter live abroad.  On the day of the crime, two women who posed as domestic breeding checkers employed with the Greater Chennai Corporation approached Sundaram's house asking to check their house for points of mosquito breeding if any. Since Sundaram was used to such visits by the Corporation staff in Thiruvanmiyur, he allowed…

Queuing up to buy Aavin milk from the milk booths makes a quintessential Chennai morning for many of us.  However, recent steps introduced by the state government have made it difficult for many customers to be able to continue buying Aavin milk in the city. What I assumed was a simple exercise to link my Ration card and Aadhar information with the milk cards issued by Aavin turned out to be a much more complicated exercise that laid bare the failings of the system.  Read more: How to get your Aadhaar card in Chennai Chaos reigns at Aavin office When…

Here is the tale of two roads from Kotturpuram. A once-quiet, leafy neighbourhood made up of six roads. I say once-quiet because we are seeing that the inexorable march of beauty parlours, co-working spaces and other commercial establishments can only be delayed by a vigilant community, not denied. So we have cars parked on all sides of our roads these days, by people who want to visit the shops and clinics on Gandhi Mandapam road, but of course, it is not their responsibility to see if their cars are blocking our access to the road. We, who have been living there…

15 railway stations in Chennai soon to get a facelift The Southern Railways has planned to revamp 15 railway stations in Chennai at the cost of Rs 251.97 crore under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. The stations that are to get the facelift includes, Guindy, Ambattur, Park, Gummidipoondi and Mambalam. The railway stations will have parking and foot-over-bridges in addition to improving the amenities like broader approach roads, installing CCTV cameras, lifts, escalators, waiting rooms, roof plazas, retail spaces and amenities for persons with disability. Source: The Times of India Read more: Facing a medical emergency in Chennai railway stations?…

"One of the first things I did as soon as I took charge as a Councillor was to ensure that the frontline workers in my ward were treated with respect. I gathered all the sanitary workers and the local officials in my ward and instructed that the frontline workers, especially the women who are often ill-treated, should be treated with respect. This includes gestures like providing them with a seat during a conversation," says Ambedvalavan (A) Kumarasamy, Councillor of Ward 73. Most of the people in Ward 73 are the people from the economically weaker section who are discriminated against…

Tamil Nadu generates a whopping Rs 44,000 crores in revenue from the Government owned TASMAC liquor stores every year. It is truly unfortunate that these shops have turned into a key source of revenue for the state as their adverse effect on the populace is not quantifiable. Making the entire situation even more unpalatable is the location of such shops across the state. Residential neighbourhoods which were once peaceful have seen great disruptions due to the presence of TASMAC shops.  One such area is in Perambur where three TASMAC shops operated within 100 mts, making the lives of residents increasingly…

Joseph and Mariyam lost their only daughter Nivi to a speeding car that hit her on OMR a couple of years ago.  "Road accidents due to speeding vehicles are prevalent in OMR and ECR. What we do not understand is why the government has not taken any measures to regulate speeding vehicles. How many more lives should we lose before we find a solution to the issue," asks Joseph. In a bid to address this problem, the Greater Chennai Traffic Police (GCTP) recently came up with a plan to enforce speed limits in Chennai. Speed radar guns will be used…

Elliot’s Beach in Besant Nagar is one of the most abused natural spaces within the city.  The beach was in pristine condition until the early 1980s, with sparkling sand with two prominent structures, the Karl Schmidt Memorial and the governor’s Guest house with terracotta tiled roof. It was a scenic beach with scattered Ipomea patches.   Uca crabs could be seen busy de-silting their burrows at the same time being vigilant about their safety from their predators and humans.  There would be three rolls of ropes, used for dragging the net, stacked neatly in a circular pattern by the well-disciplined fishers.…

Flyovers to be open at night in Chennai Flyovers across Chennai will be open overnight after a recent decision by the city’s Traffic Police. Previously, all flyovers were shut during the night time, forcing motorists to take longer routes to reach their destination.  The restriction on the use of flyovers during the night was put in place during the pandemic to reduce vehicular movement but had continue long after. The rationale behind its continuation was that it was seen as a move to curb erratic driving and overspeeding at night. With more offices remaining open overnight, there has been an…