EDITORS' PICK

Over the past few months, there appears to have been a marked improvement in the number of cyclists and the total trips taken in the city. This trend was gauged from the riding data of a subset of cyclists who use the popular service Strava. The charts below have been drawn from the data collected by Strava Metro which helps cities improve infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians. The data is provided by real time users who enable the app to track their ride. This data provides insight on the different corridors and the number of cyclists during the day. Surge…

We are nearing the end of a year that none of us ever imagined we’d have to live through. So much of what we practiced, what we believed to be ‘normal’, has proved to be as vulnerable as a reed in a storm. Our lives have changed radically and so have our festivals, with restrictions galore on traditional customs, rituals and celebrations. But surely, we do not need COVID to tell us that we ought to move away from celebrations with firecrackers?  Yes, the coronavirus has indeed made that move much more pressing, creating as it does a lethal mix…

Every day is a struggle for 20-year-old R Jagadeesan. Slumped into his wooden chair at his 1 BHK home at Medavakkam, he is desperately thinking of ways to earn some money and pay off his debts. A street vendor who ran into heavy losses during the testing times of the pandemic, he had pinned all hopes on Deepavali. The festival of lights has always provided Jagadeesan an opportunity to make some quick money. Every Deepavali, he works as a helper in a fireworks shop for a week and earns a decent pay of Rs 10,000 - Rs 12,000 for that period.…

It had been over 25 years since Neelamma N Reddy went scouring for greens in Varthur lake.   The lake was a veritable buffet of greens and fish for her. She’d find over 30 varieties of fish and small crabs that could be scooped up from its banks. “Then, there were 4-5 types of greens we’d pick up. Some herbs, like Bassale soppu (Malabar Spinach) were used to treat constipation or piles. The banks had guava, coconut and jamun trees from which children used to collect fruits,” she says.  Bengaluru’s growth turned Varthur into a part of the city’s Information Technology…

A few weeks ago, we explained how India’s most populous city, Mumbai, has the highest density of leopards in the country.   Unsurprisingly, wildlife experts have called for an increase in the number of leopard rescue centers in Maharashtra. With the increase in the leopard population in the state and human habitations closing in on the green forest spaces, the conflict between humans and leopards are increasing. Leopard rescue centers are a stop gap arrangement to deal with such conflicts.   Rescuing big cats  A leopard rescue center houses leopards that are injured, rescued or caught for attacking humans or they are…

As the city woke up to heavy rainfall a fortnight ago, Korattur lake once again faced the threat of a fresh bout of contamination with sewage-laden rainwater. If not for the intervention of pro-active citizens, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) would have cleared the surplus water canal to the Korattur Lake, to allow toxic water into the lake.  This is not the first time, though. GCC officials have been doing it every monsoon so as to prevent flooding in the roads of Ambattur and Korattur.  The absence of an underground sewerage system in the area and effluent treatment plants results…

The approaching festival of lights was beginning to bring people out shopping to CP, Sarojini Nagar, Lajpat Nagar and every other market. But alarm bells started ringing when the daily COVID figures crossed the 6000 mark on November 3rd and stayed that way for the next few days. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal suspected it could be a third wave of the deadly virus. The timing was particularly worrisome. It was a double whammy, dampening the festival spirit and raising fears of poor air quality accelerating the spread of COVID-19 spread and its effects. The number of cases in the capital has surged again. Hospitals are…

With Diwali just around the corner, the debate around allowing the sale and use of crackers has once again taken centre stage. Apart from the alarming levels of air pollution, another consideration this year has been the spread of COVID-19. Since it is a respiratory illness, the overarching argument against crackers this year has been further strengthened by the fact that it could worsen the condition of those already afflicted by the virus. Several studies have already established the positive correlation between air pollution and COVID-morbidity.  In a recent study, six researchers from different European institutes have said that 17…

The numbers have finally begun to come down. Just as residents of Chennai had assumed that the daily COVID-19 figures would forever hover around the high 900s or low 1000s, the virus has shown signs of relenting. The statistics have taken a turn for the better, with the city registering around 750 numbers each day. The number of containment zones is less than 20. All of these are something to rejoice about. Unfortunately for us, many in the city have begun to assume that the pandemic belongs to the past. That this is a very foolish notion will be made…

As a person who has attended probably a few thousand short and long meetings, I can vouch for the fact that you cannot run a company without meetings. And even if a lot of employees feel they are a waste of time, the alternative to having meetings is the ‘command, control, dictate’ system of working. Where all decisions get taken by a few people who then dictate their decisions to the rest of the organization. Without meetings, what we call the modern day organization will collapse. But researchers have been trying to figure out ways to make meetings more productive.…