GENRE: Explainers

After years of preparation and drafting, the union government has finally given the green light to a Model Tenancy Act (MTA) 2021, which aims to make rent laws more equitable for landlord and tenant, and smoothen the processing of renting a home. Such an act had become necessary to achieve the target of constructing 20 million houses for the urban poor by 2022 under the Pradhan Mantri Aawas Yojana. The 2011 census had recorded a total of 246.69 million households, of which 68% were rural and 32% urban, leaving 63.67 million urban and rural families without adequate housing. In India,…

The pandemic has not only been a health emergency, but also a huge blow on the economic front. Many people lost their jobs while many more have faced pay cuts. Some like R Sunitha stepped up to the challenge by starting their own business ventures. Sunitha, who lost her job, became a home chef during the lockdown. "I took it very hard initially when I lost my job. But I knew I had to pull my act together to earn during the pandemic. I applied for a trade licence and started my own food business and became a home chef,"…

In the run up to the monsoons, tree trimming or pruning in Mumbai is a regular affair. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Garden Department takes care of the trees on the roads and public spaces, and it used to do this in individual housing societies as well, on request. However, BMC recently announced that societies would now need to take the responsibility for the trimming of the trees in their premises, and bear the costs, after getting BMC permission. A few days ago, the exercise of "tree trimming " was carried out in the society where I live, Gitanjali Cooperative Housing…

According to experts, a mutant variant of SARS-Cov-2, B.1.617.2 — now named Delta variant — was a major reason that led to the devastating second wave across the country. First identified in October in India,  it is now the dominant variant in the country, responsible for 80% of new cases. “It travelled from south to north along the western states — from Kerala to Kashmir, before spreading to the central and eastern states,” says Dr N K Arora, chairman of the COVID working group under the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI). The Delta variant has mutations in its…

With Metro rail coming up along many stretches, Bengaluru is set to lose a large number of trees. But many trees have also been marked for transplantation. BMRCL (Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd) has been giving work orders to contractors to transplant these trees. Currently, BMRCL is the only agency undertaking tree transplantation in Bengaluru, says BBMP Tree Officer H S Ranganatha Swamy. In Bengaluru, as in other Indian cities, government agencies had rejected the idea of transplantation for years, citing high costs and low survival rates. In fact, when 10 trees were transplanted from the first Metro stretch in…

The Mumbai civic body – Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) also known as Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) provides municipal services to the city. Divided into 24 administrative wards, it is headed by the Mayor, who is the city’s first citizen and the ceremonial head; and the Municipal Commissioner, who works as the chief executive authority. While the 24 wards are decentralized for the convenience of the city's administration, each ward has its own ward office and ward officers (Assistant Municipal Commissioners). Presently, Mrs. Kishori Pednekar is the Mayor and Iqbal Singh Chahal, a 1989-batch IAS officer is the Municipal…

[Translated by Sandhya Raju] சென்னை பள்ளிகளில் நடந்த முந்தைய மற்றும் சமீபத்திய பாலியல் தொல்லைகள் குறித்த புகார்கள், பெரும் அதிர்வலைகளை எழுப்பியுள்ளன. பாதுகாப்பான இடமாக பள்ளிகள் இல்லை என்பதையே இது உணர்த்துகிறது. ஆனால், ஒரு சில ஆசிரியர்கள் இது போன்ற குற்ற செயல்களில் ஈடுபடுவதற்கு பள்ளிகள் பொறுப்பேற்க முடியுமா? பாதிக்கப்பட்டவர்களுக்கு நீதி கிடைக்க கல்வி நிறுவனங்கள் என்ன செய்ய வேண்டும். முக்கியமாக, இது போன்ற சம்பவங்கள் நிகழாமல் தடுக்க என்ன செய்ய வேண்டும்? சிறார் நீதி (குழந்தைகளின் பராமரிப்பு மற்றும் பாதுகாப்பு) சட்டம், 2015 படி, குழந்தைகளுக்கு அருகாமையில் இருந்து, தேவைப்படும் கல்வி அல்லது பயிற்சியை வழங்குவதில் எந்தவொரு பள்ளி, நிறுவனம் அல்லது தனிநபர்கள் ஈடுபட்டுள்ளனரோ, அவர்களின் பாதுகாப்பை உறுதிப்படுத்த பொறுப்புணர்வு மற்றும் சொந்த பொறுப்பு ஏற்க வேண்டும் என கூறுகிறது. பள்ளி வளாகத்திற்குள், பள்ளி பேருந்தில், ஆன்லைன் அமர்வுகளின் போது அல்லது மாணவர்களுடன் பள்ளி ஊழியர்களின் எந்தவொரு ஈடுபாட்டிலும்,…

With accelerating climate change and rising sea levels due to global warming, there has been a significant disruption in hydrological cycles globally. Heavy rainfall and flooding regularly inundates most of our cities, destroying natural and infrastructural ecosystems. Mumbai, home to around 20 million people, is no different. The monsoon downpours bring the city to a standstill year after year. There is also the threat of cyclones and storms from the Arabian Sea such as Takutae earlier this year – those that can potentially cause havoc in the coastal city. Why is it that the city is not equipped to deal…

Looking at Chennai's roads, one would wonder if the roads in Indian cities are designed only for motorised vehicles. Two wheelers and four wheelers account for 90% of the total vehicle fleet pushing users of public transport, pedestrians and cyclists to the margins even though the majority of trips are made by them. The civic administration in Chennai woke up late to this issue. It began constructing footpaths in several parts of the city. And I decided to get a feel of these footpaths to see how comfortable it is to walk on them. What better place to experience than to…

To report a criminal offence for the police to investigate, a person has to file a First Information Report (FIR) by visiting the nearest police station in the locality where the offence/crime has occurred. An FIR is a written document which is filed by the police. Under Section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (‘CrPC’), the law gives a choice to a person to give information orally or in writing. If the information is disclosed orally by a person, then the report must be produced in writing by the police officer herself or under her direction. In Mumbai city,…