City: Chennai

‘Inconvenience today for a better tomorrow’ signs follow commuters across the city as work inches on for the 118-km Chennai Metro Phase II. Residents eagerly await three corridors that will connect Madhavaram to SIPCOT, Lighthouse to Poonamalle Bypass, and Madhavaram to Sholinganallur by 2028. But the project is resulting in an irreversible loss of green cover along the corridors, far more than was estimated at the time of its approval. A total of 8,029 trees would be affected, either felled or transplanted, for the project. Over 7,000 of these trees have been uprooted already. Though new trees are planted to…

On a regular day in May, the calls of migratory waders and other shorebirds foraging in sprawling mudflats fill the air in the southern reaches of Chennai. May is the dry season for the Pallikaranai Marsh, when water levels naturally recede, exposing the critical feeding and breeding grounds that attract hundreds of bird species to this globally recognised urban wetland. But this year is different. The mudflats are gone. In their place is a stagnant expanse of water. This unusual water level during the dry season is not due to early rains. Indiscriminate construction within the marsh is blocking the…

The Straight-cut Flood Escape Channel project at Uthandi in the southern part of Chennai along East Coast Road was conceived by the Water Resources Department (WRD) as a flood mitigation measure, with a budget of ₹91 crores. The plan proposes a cut-and-cover drain through the VGP Layout in Uthandi, to connect the Buckingham Canal to the Bay of Bengal. The drain is supposedly meant to divert excess floodwater in Buckingham Canal during heavy rains, when areas around the Pallikaranai marsh and Okkiyam Madavu face flooding.  Work on the project started immediately after its inauguration in August 2025. However, residents of…

Across India, temperatures are soaring, and the impact is evident, from 300 suspected heat-related illness cases reported in Andhra Pradesh to 200 in Maharashtra, say news reports. Heat is unequally felt, with informal workers bearing the brunt of income loss and illness during the blazing hours. Another overlooked impact is heatwaves’ toll on menstrual and reproductive health, where access to washrooms and clean water exacerbates summers for women in low-income settlements, experts say.  Extreme heat exposure overlaps closely with marginalisation, says Vidhya Venugopal, Professor of Climate Change, Occupational and Environmental Health at Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research…

At 8 am every day, M Subashini hops onto her two-wheeler and braces herself for the incessant Zomato order notifications on her phone, and the blistering May heat. Armed with a water bottle and gloves, the gig worker says "Veyil thaangamudila (can't bear the sun). But we took this job to be independent, and earn — so we can't stop, for rain or heat.” Shuttling across Ambattur's roads, the 38-year-old races between restaurants and residences, dropping off food packages under the scorching sun. An order within five kilometres usually earns her ₹20–50. “Men can do longer distances, but I can’t.…

Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) headed by actor-turned-politician C Joseph Vijay emerged as the single largest party in the recent Tamil Nadu assembly election. Launched in 2024, the debutant party won 108 of the available 234 seats, and secured power after gaining post-election support from Congress, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), CPI, CPI (M) and some rebel All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) MLAs. Vijay was sworn in as the Chief Minister on May 10. In Chennai, TVK’s tally was an impressive 18 of 20 seats.  A leading star testing political waters and finding success has…

“If the authorities go to Putlur Lake and actually listen to the residents there, how would a sewage treatment plant (STP) at this location in Madambakkam even get sanctioned in the first place? Either they are unaware, or lethargic towards community welfare,” says Anand R, a weather and waterproofing expert and a Madambakkam resident, who lives close to the proposed STP site.  Madambakkam, situated in the southern part of Chennai, is an old town with a long history, known for its ancient temple and open grasslands. Over the years, however, rapid urbanisation has begun to change its landscape. Recently, lake…

Ever since the contentious Mamallan reservoir was proposed in the ecosensitive Kovalam–Nemmeli backwater system, fisher communities in Chennai have repeatedly asked: Does it have to be here? Experts and scientists say no, urging the government to abandon the project and work on sustainable alternatives.  Critics point to a long list of costs: high expenditure, land acquisition, and risks to livelihoods and biodiversity. As we have reported earlier, the central concern driving the project is the looming drinking water supply crisis – demand is projected to rise from 1,100 million litres a day (MLD) to over 2,500 MLD for the Greater…

Mohana S recalls how Kanima Nagar in Periya Nemmeli, Chengalpattu, was bountiful just 20 years ago, filled with trees, paddy crops, and rabbits. Picking brackish‑water prawns from the Great Salt Lake, a five‑minute walk away, provided income for her hamlet of about 36 Irular families. Today, this area, around 40 km from Chennai, has become dry land with weeds, prone to floods every northeastern monsoon. Residents report a drop in catch and link the changing landscape to urbanisation in Chennai, groundwater depletion, flooding, and erosion along the Kovalam coast. “When it rains, we in Kanima Nagar suffer in the floods.…

Across cities, official Air Quality Index (AQI) readings often overlook local hotspots. Chennai has eight Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) that function 24/7 throughout the year. But this isn’t enough to map particulate matter. Air changes every few metres, as researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras tell us. Seasonal variation, construction, vehicular movement, and proximity to industries also change the air we breathe, In 2022, over 17 lakh people died in India due to air pollution (PM 2.5), according to a Lancet study. With better hyper-local air data and public awareness, citizens and policymakers can target pollution…