GENRE: Explainers

City officials have been thinking of widening Sankey road for 40 years. However, their plans for easing traffic congestion around this busy junction has been largely criticised. Those opposing the move to widen Sankey road are concerned about the loss of 100-year-old trees, footpaths, the safety of the tank bund, as well as increased traffic and pollution. The plan appears to go dormant every decade, but refuses to die. Plans to widen Sankey Road have been in the making since 1984. Pic: Sacha Fernandez (CC BY-NC-ND-2.0) Four decades in the making In 1984, the city’s first Master Plan included a…

When someone sees him for the first time, the most striking feature will have to be his quirky spectacle frame – square on his left eye, and round on the other. Narresh is the co-founder and creative director of Shivan & Narresh, India's first luxury holiday brand that was launched in Cannes with 100% stitch-free swim line. He has been featured in every major luxury fashion magazine and portal. Whether this was a future he had envisioned years back, when he was preparing for his final school board examinations, is difficult to say. But in a way the genesis of…

The rapid urbanisation of Chennai calls for a better plan for the city's growth. Master Plans play a crucial role in defining the direction of a city's growth. Chennai so far has seen two Master Plans. While the First Master Plan was intended to be in effect between 1976 and 2001, it lasted till August 2008. The Second Master Plan, which has been in effect since 2008, lasts till 2026. The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA), has started the visioning exercise for the preparation of the Third Master Plan which will span from 2026 to 2046 for Chennai and has…

On January 18th, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) invited people to send in their suggestions for the annual municipal budget on Twitter. This is a step towards making the country's richest municipal corporation's budget more democratic. But with such an open question, and the fact that not many people are not even familiar with the structure and form of the budget, where do you start? In a previous explainer, we covered the basics of the BMC's budget. We touched on how to read through the budget estimates as and when the BMC releases it, as it is a complicated bunch…

It has been nine months after the partial start of Mumbai metro lines 2a and 7. With Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating Phase 2 of the lines, Mumbaikars can now travel the length from Dahisar to Andheri within 40 minutes; on the west by Line 2a, or Line 7 in the east. Running parallel to the Western railway line and Western Express Highway (WEH) at 80 km per hour, the six-car trains with a capacity of 2,280 passengers will easily be the faster and more comfortable option for travel. Their connection to the metro Line 1 running between Andheri to…

"Local ward councillors are the bridge between the public and the Corporation. They are responsible for the most basic amenities for a citizen to lead a comfortable life," says M. Mahesh Kumar, the Deputy Mayor of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC). Chennai did not have an elected council for six years until the local body elections were held in 2022. "Previously, the officials looked after local governance. There would not have been a chance for the people and the officials to have approached each other about civic matters regularly. But, today, we have ward councillors chosen by the people. They…

Retrofitting existing buildings consists of making modifications that may improve energy efficiency or decrease energy demand. But one may ask why care about decreasing energy demand when you can just pay extra to get all the energy one needs? However, a holistic perspective that surpasses mere monetary considerations is required for a transition towards energy-efficient spaces. An assessment by the International Energy Agency (2021) indicates that energy demand in buildings in India has grown by 40% since 2000, mostly on account of growing appliance ownership, especially air conditioners, and increased access to modern cooking fuels. The direct use of fossil…

Gone are the days we paid in cash for every other purchase. With the increasing use of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions, almost all shops ranging from roadside stalls to big supermarkets tend to facilitate UPI payments. As much as it seems to have made our lives easier, there has been an increasing trend of scams related to UPI payments and digital transactions in Chennai and across the country. A recent study shows that the country has around 35 crore transacting users across various digital platforms, including e-commerce, shopping, travel and hospitality. The number is set to hit 70 crore…

Savitha*, a 16-year-old minor girl from Chennai, was to be married off to a 35-year-old man in September of last year. Her parents invited close relatives to the ceremony by handing out invitations. Just as the wedding was about to take place, officials from Childline came to her rescue based on a tip-off from her 15-year-old cousin. He sent a copy of the invitation to the non-governmental organisation (NGO) that had once conducted an awareness programme on preventing child marriages in their locality. Savitha was lucky and was rescued on time. She is now pursuing an undergraduate degree in a…

Are you someone who knocks on the doors of private clinics or large private hospitals even for a fever or minor ailments? Do you know there are government-run Urban Primary Health Centres (UPHC) in Chennai with facilities to treat minor ailments and for the diagnosis of major illnesses? The city's public healthcare infrastructure came under the spotlight during the pandemic as it was at the forefront of fighting the virus. The major government hospitals took in patients while the UPHCs served as points for screening and vaccination. It was only then that a majority of residents came into contact with…