GENRE: Features

The indefinite strike by workers of the transport department has completely derailed commute in Metropolitan Chennai, a city lauded for its integrated public transport module. Thousands of commuters are stranded and roads are gridlocked in the city, but it is impossible to miss the sense the anger among transport department workers who have been off the roads for four days now. They did not call off the strike, despite being warned of termination from service by the Madras High Court. What could have prompted them to this level of desperation? It’s time to take a deeper look. The minimum ticket fare…

What do a 91 year 'young' activist, and a 40-something marine biologist have in common? A love for this city they call home, and a desire to help its citizens overcome their sense of helplessness in finding solutions to everyday civic problems.. Garbage not cleared? Road being relaid without milling? Storm water drains not cleaned before the monsoon? Electricity cables hanging dangerously in the open? In each of these situations, the solution is at hand. Help is often only a phone call away. But if we ask the average citizen on the road, the most common response will be  -…

Media focus on the fire that broke out and killed four in Mumbai’s residential Mamoon Manzil complex has been less compared to that on the fire tragedy in the same city in the end of December. The cause of the fire in this building is yet to be ascertained but no one would be surprised if it was pinned down to faulty management and violation of rules. Barely a week ago, the Kamala Mills tragedy got the Bruhan Mumbai Corporation (BMC) on its toes, throwing them into panic-stricken knee-jerk reaction: suspending five officials, galvanising authorities, managers, health and medical experts…

For months now, motorists have been having a roller coaster ride on Thiruvengadam Lane in Perambur. The road was resurfaced with concrete sometime in early 2016. Then, it was the turn of TANGEDCO to dig up the road in September 2017, to lay a new power cable to connect one transformer to another. Upon inquiring why the road was being dug up within a span of months, we were informed that a new electric cable needs to be laid and this work could be done only after the sanctions were in place. It’s been months and the dug up road…

In the latter half of November 2017, as bulldozers razed some unauthorised religious structures that stood tall on Chitlapakkam Lake for years, hordes of curious onlookers gathered on the streets, pausing their daily chores. Led by senior IAS officer P Amudha, the Public Works Department demolished a few temples, a mosque and a church that residents have been emotionally and spiritually connected to, for decades. What warmed the officials’ hearts were the smiles on the faces of the people, many of whom lauded the speedy action. But, can we expect similar action in all the water bodies of Chennai? Religious…

Smart Cities Mission (SCM), an exclusive initiative of the Modi government, has got much attention because of its promise to dramatically transform cities. SCM was launched in 2015, aiming to develop 100 cities in the country as ‘smart cities’. The cities are selected based on their current development status and their project proposals. The chosen cities get funding of Rs 500 cr each from the central government and the respective state governments. They have to secure the rest of the funds through municipal bonds, PPP projects etc. This implies that citizens will have to pay user charges for many of…

If you were to ask any commuter in any Indian city about their daily pet peeve, it would be the time spent in traffic. And now, Ola, the new age mobility platform serving 110 cities with 8 lakh vehicles on the roads has presented a year-end glimpse of 'how India commuted' based on their records. Some highlights from the top seven cities - Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Pune, Kolkata, and Chennai: Total average traffic speed dropped by a whopping 2.9km/hr with Bangalore registering the slowest at 17.2km/hour Ola Share has saved 4 times the fuel from last year, telling of the high customer adoption…

It is said that circumstances define the course of one’s life. 15 years back Roja Sri, a young girl then, left Chidambaram for Chennai to get away from her father and step-mother who deprived her not only of her mother’s wealth, but also basic necessities such as food, shelter and clothing. But far from making her resentful and bitter, this made Roja Sri determined to dedicate her life to serving people, especially those who have no one to care for them. Today, the 34-year-old woman, popularly known as ‘Roja Amma’ is an example and inspiration as she has broken many…

Once again it’s that time of the year when we are most prone to looking back and ahead at the same time. Taking stock of the year’s discourse on urbanisation in India, it is evident that some issues have consistently dominated the narrative and been on top of the minds of urban citizens in 2017. These are also issues that we need to sustain focus upon as we move into the new year, since they will continue to play an important role in determining the dynamics and direction of development in the country, and in particular in its cities. As…