EDITORS' PICK

This article is part of our special series Environmental Sustainability & Climate Change in Tier II cities supported by Climate Trends. The colonial summer capital is taking some key steps on the energy front in its goal of becoming a green city. Presently, 67 government buildings are switching over to solar power and more than 1,000  street lights are working on solar energy. Also, dozens of city hotels are maximising their use of solar energy systems, while several residential buildings have installed photovoltaic technologies to cut down their monthly power bills. “This is our 2021-22 mission for a green city project…

Reminiscing moments from the early days of their romance, J Prasanna (30) and M Murugan (34) celebrated their 12th year anniversary over a simple feast two months ago. It was a celebration that marked the triumph of love in a homophobic society.  Murugan loves Ilayaraja's music, while Prasanna is a devout Sam Smith fan. Murugan is an avid reader of the works of Sujatha and Kalki and Prasanna pores over anything that is written by Sydney Sheldon or Jeffrey Archer. Testament to the common adage that opposites attract, Murugan and Prasanna fell in love in 2008, finding solace in each…

Around five years ago, Suvarna Sane was looking for unique products to gift during a get-together. At one exhibition of women entrepreneurs, Sane came across upcycled products of reCharkha. "I was always an environmentally conscious buyer and the purses and totes from upcycled plastic appealed to me,” says Sane,  a government servant. “My friends and relatives also appreciated them.” Sane later learnt that Amita Deshpande and her team at reCharkha also accepted plastic bags as donation. "I went to her workshop, which was also their tailoring unit, with my plastic bags,” adds Sane. “I was impressed with their work and…

As urban citizens, we all have different desires, aspiration and expectations from our city. We raise issues that we face in our day-to-day lives, we voice our concerns, share our wishlists, but we rarely perceive things from the perspective of a child. This Child Rights Week (November 14th to 20th), we spoke to a few children from the city. Here is what they had to say about the city and what they want from it: K Mithun, Class 6, Chitlapakkam Due to COVID, all our day-to-day learning activities have moved online. While it is convenient for most of us, it…

Pedestrians are among the most endangered population category of Hyderabad, the sixth most populous urban agglomeration in India and the fourth largest in terms of area. “One-third of accident victims in Hyderabad were pedestrians,” according to Telangana Director General of Police, M Mahender Reddy.  Given the current state of the pedestrian walkways and footpaths, this comes as no surprise. The rapid cheek-by-jowl urbanisation over the last four decades has put a heavy burden on Hyderabad’s infrastructure, especially its transportation and road network. The few pavements that do exist are in very poor condition with about 95% of them encroached by…

A distraught resident from a neighbourhood in Chennai called Nizhal recently to help resolve an issue. Her 40 year-old naval/jamun tree had over the years grown to reach out toward their neighbours’ home. Now the neighbours were insistent that the entire branch be chopped off or the entire tree felled!  She had several questions she wanted  answers for: Could the chopping cause an imbalance or fungal infection to the trees? Would the tree be easier to kill when the branch is chopped? How could Nizhal support in protecting the tree? She also wanted to know if there was a government…

10 years ago, Meenakshi Kumaran, a resident of Madurai, got married in a grand ceremony. Her parents not only bore the cost of the wedding but also gifted her 100 sovereigns ( 1 sovereign = 8 grams) of jewellery. That was only about 1/10th of the property of her father, though. Today, Meenakshi is penniless. Her extravagant and alcoholic husband who recently died had long sold off her jewels. After her father passed away a few years ago, her brother took over his property and refuses to give Meenakshi her legitimate share. And on her part, having grown up in a…

Ever wondered what happens to the onion peels or pieces of plastic that you throw casually in the dustbin? Every bit of waste that we generate has a long journey, that often goes unnoticed. It goes through a lot of procedures and undergoes various transitions. Understanding the journey of waste helps citizens contribute more to the cause of waste management.  Chennai generates 5600 tonnes of waste every day. Let's take a look at the various measures being implemented by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) on Solid Waste Management (SWM) to present the story of trash.  The SWM bye-law mandates source…

[In Part 1 of this series we saw that sex workers in Bengaluru are facing starvation and violence due to the COVID lockdown. In Part 2, we explore why they haven't been able to access aid and support, and how this could change.]  “What is there to feel sorry? They have created their own problems out of greed and lust” says Shamim, waiting for a relative near the Majestic bus station. Shamim was responding to my question: “Where are the women who used to hang out here at night? Any idea how these poor souls are managing?” He hesitantly confesses that…

[In Part 1 of this series, we saw how Bengaluru's lakes used to provide food and livelihoods to communities living around them, and how this has been lost over time. In this part, we explore solutions to the problem.] The afforestation and tree planting schemes around Bengaluru's lakes do not seem to believe livelihood is a priority. For example, the banks of Kalkere lake now sport a variety of exotic species including palm trees, instead of honge and tamarind trees that local residents once depended on. Even lake rejuvenation often has been for recreational value, with the lake bed scooped out…