GENRE: In Focus

In June of 2021, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin introduced ‘Singara Chennai 2.0,’ an ode to past projects not finished under Singara Chennai 1.0. These initiatives have been centred around giving various parts of the city a facelift. As part of these efforts, beach beautification has been one of the areas of focus. Under Singara Chennai 2.0, the plan to revamp the city’s beaches has been dubbed ‘Project Blue.’  Agencies such as the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) and Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) have since begun chalking out plans for the city’s various beaches. But these ideas come with some concerns for…

In parts one and two of this series, we looked at the condition of the 30 dhobi ghats in the city and why there isn't a single functioning water recycling plant to solve the issue of water scarcity. In this third and final part, we will look at how the rise of laundry brands are becoming a severe threat to traditional dhobi ghats and the dhobis' livelihood. With the majority of dhobi ghats relying heavily on manual washing and minimum use of technology, the emergence of laundry brands, which use and advertise technological tools to entice more customers, is posing…

“Earlier, we would wash clothes by the riverside. But later we dug up bore wells in all dhobi ghats, which have become our main source of water,” says Mahalingayya, president of Karnataka Rajya Madikatte Ghataka that oversees the functioning of dhobi ghats across Karnataka. In Bengaluru, each dhobi ghat has at least two borewells. However, water scarcity is still an issue. The solution is using recycled water. But the cost and maintenance of water treatment plants are of primary concern. Water usage in dhobi ghats Each dhobi ghat uses varying quantities of water on a daily basis. The average can…

As one passes the bridge in Kotturpuram, the huge mound of construction debris that lies on the left, close to the banks of the Adyar River, cannot escape the eye. Amidst this debris lie the dreams of Kumari and hundreds of other families, whose story we narrated in an earlier report on Citizen Matters Chennai.  Kumari had bought with her hard-earned savings a 280-sq ft room in the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board (TNUHDB) tenements that stood on this site. But that dream lasted for barely a year and a half. Then the Board decided to demolish these buildings…

Coastal cities have been centers of growth and development for centuries, but the same areas that once thrived are now vulnerable to the consequences of climate change. Megacities like Mumbai and coastal cities across the world are particularly at risk as the global temperatures increase. As the sea levels rise, they pose unprecedented risks of floods and storm surges, affecting human lives and property. By 2070, Mumbai is projected to be home to over 11 million people in areas susceptible to rising sea levels and heightened flooding. That is almost four times more than current exposed population of 2.7 million.…

At the recently held BBMP – Work Orders, Budgets and Processes Datajam, a group of citizen volunteers analysed the data available in the public domain. Here are their observations and suggestions on BBMP’s pothole work orders. To: Sri. SomashekarBBMP Chief Engineer (Road Infrastructure) Dear Sir, Observations: We analysed BBMP pothole work orders and citizen complaints about potholes on the Fix My Street app. The idea was to see if BBMP was listening to citizen complaints while planning spending on pothole repair. We found that BBMP was spending between Rs 4 crore to Rs 25 crore on pothole management, according to…

Deepali (name changed on request) was 22 when she was diagnosed with drug resistant tuberculosis in 2020. She had already lost about 12 kilograms and was immediately put on a heavy dose of antibiotics, including injectables. “Tuberculosis claimed her appetite, and the medicines prescribed to her had such severe side-effects that she was unable to eat anything and was throwing up after every dose of medicine,” says her mother.  When she could not tolerate the treatment, her family consulted Dr Lalit Anande, a noted TB-specialist, who advised her to eat anything that she found tasty and was easy-to-digest. He increased…

சிடிஸன் கன்சூமர் அண்ட் சிவிக் ஆக்ஷன் குரூப் (சிஏஜி) மூத்த ஆய்வாளரான சுமனா நாராயணன், 2003 ஆம் ஆண்டு சென்னையில் நான்கு சக்கர வாகனம் ஓட்டுவதற்கான உரிமம் பெற விரும்பியபோது, ​​ஓட்டுநர் தேர்வில் தேர்ச்சி பெற, அவர் சாலையில் குறைந்தது 300 மீட்டர் ஓட்ட வேண்டும். .  திருவான்மியூர் வட்டாரப் போக்குவரத்து அலுவலகம் (ஆர்டிஓ) பின்புறம் உள்ள குறுகலான தெருவில் காரை ஓட்டி, போக்குவரத்து சிக்னலில் காரை நிறுத்திவிட்டு, இடதுபுறம் திரும்பி, மேலும் 200 மீட்டர் தூரம் ஓட்டும்படி சுமனாவிடம் கூறப்பட்டது.  "என்னுடைய பெற்றோரின் தலைமுறையில், சென்னையில் ஓட்டுநர் உரிமம் பெறுவதற்கு வாகனம் நிறுத்துவதற்கு கூட அவர்கள் சோதனை செய்யப்பட்டனர்," என்று அவர் கூறுகிறார். இரண்டு தசாப்தங்களுக்குப் பிறகு, திருவான்மியூரில் ராம்* அதே ஆர்டிஓவில் ஓட்டுநர் சோதனைக்குச் சென்றபோது, ​​அவர் 100 மீட்டர் மட்டுமே ஓட்ட வேண்டியிருந்தது.  "இது ஒரு நேர் கோடாக இருந்தது. முந்தைய விண்ணப்பதாரரால் கார் இன்ஜின் ஏற்கனவே ஆன்…

At the recently held BBMP – Work Orders, Budgets and Processes Datajam, a group of citizen volunteers analysed the data available in the public domain, here are their observations and suggestions on BBMP’s expenditure on street lights and surveillance and its links to road safety. To: Sri. Ravindra P N, BBMP Special Commissioner (Projects) Dear Sir, We are a group of citizen volunteers. We would like to share our observations and suggestions on BBMP’s expenditure on street lights and surveillance. And examine its links to road safety. Observations: We looked at road accidents and the distribution of the funds (work…

At the recently held BBMP – Work Orders, Budgets and Processes Datajam, a group of citizen volunteers analysed the data available in the public domain. Here are their observations and suggestions on BBMP’s expenditure and efforts in waste management. To:Dr. Harishkumar, Special Commissioner (SWM) Dear Sir, We are a group of citizen volunteers who would like to share our observations and suggestions on BBMP’s expenditure and efforts in waste management. Solid waste management constitutes 14.7% of the BBMP budget (1643.72 crores). As part of the Shubra Bengaluru Project, BBMP has identified 1,555 Garbage Vulnerable Points (GVPs) also called as ‘black…