GENRE: In Focus

This year, the government announced an increase in the Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for farmers, those national benefactors who are mostly forgotten. The MSP for 14 crops sown in the summer was increased. The price of paddy was hiked by 13 per cent to Rs 200 per quintal, the most important crop, while the MSP for cotton saw a hike of 28 per cent. This was called a “historic decision” by the government, but it immediately set off a ripple of fear among consumers in cities. Will inflation shoot up? Shall we now have to pay more taxes in order to maintain…

A viral Facebook post narrating assault by the police during a routine traffic stop that took place in Chetpet on July 19th has sent shock waves across the city. Haroon Sait, the victim, spoke out about being slapped and beaten by the police as he refused their demand for a bribe. The sub-inspector in question has since been suspended after a departmental inquiry. Commissioner of Police A.K.Viswanathan called on Haroon at his residence and assured that such incidents will not take place in the future. This is, however, not the first instance of a major altercation between motorists and traffic…

After intense overnight showers, Bhubaneswar woke up on a Saturday morning in July with half the city under water. The situation at the capital of the eastern state of Odisha in many ways typifies poor urban management in India that is crumbling under adverse climatic conditions. Residents in many parts of the city were stranded in their homes and the condition was so dire in some parts that the state’s disaster response team had to start rescue operations. Roads in the state capital looked like gushing streams. Disaster response forces moved to waterlogged areas with floating pumps to drain out…

Tamil Nadu will be banning single use plastic and other biodegradables from January 2019. Not wishing to impose restrictions on unprepared citizens, the state government has given itself and its people a good six months before the ban kicks in and plans to conduct back-to-back campaigns over this period. From sensitising shopkeepers and consumers about switching to biodegradable bags to campaigning against plastic in schools, the civic body is leaving no stone unturned to ensure successful implementation.   But, how are the people of the city reacting to the prospect of doing away with single-use plastic altogether? Responses have been mixed…

16 traders lose licences for using disposable plastic At a council meeting held in July, BBMP had declared an ultimatum to traders who do not stop using disposable plastic material (cups, plates and spoons). Mayor Sampath Raj had chalked out a week's deadline for the shopkeepers to permanently shift to using eco-friendly materials instead, failing which the licences of establishments would be cancelled. True to their word, the corporation's health department cancelled 16 trading licences of shops in Avenue Road, Bommanahalli and Neelasandra. One and a half tonnes of plastic was recovered through the raids conducted over two days, along with…

Every Chennaiite who has lived through the floods of 2015 has a quiet apprehension about the monsoon. The revelation that the 2015 flooding, which left scores dead and Chennai in shambles, was the result of inaction on the part of officials, has increased the distrust among the public. However, a joint effort by various stakeholders to renew and restore close to a 100 water bodies under the Greater Chennai Corporation has been underway for many months now. The Goals of Restoration Flood mitigation, renewal of water table and rejuvenation of water bodies constitute the aim of the initiative that has seen…

Plastic bans across various Indian states have been in the headlines for over a month now, with Maharashtra abandoning plastic and Tamil Nadu announcing plans to follow suit from January 2019. A partial ban on plastic is in place in five states  in India -- Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal, Kerala and Goa. Indian cities have joined others around the world in observing a plastic-free July, and there are various initiatives underway to spread awareness and encourage rejection of single-use plastic. However, in this much-needed discourse around plastic and its ill effects, there has been a notable lack of attention given…

The Swacch Bharat ranking released last month has seen Chennai climb to rank 100, up from a lowly 235 the previous year. While there is some reason for cheer there, realities on the ground with regard to sanitation facilities in the city are far from promising. Chennai's lack of public toilets has been an issue that has plagued the city for many years.  With a burgeoning population, the facilities in existing toilets have also been found to be wanting. Couched in this larger issue is the oft neglected problem of absence of adequate public toilets for women in the city…

If you have a maxed out your credit card, you may be scrambling to pay your outstanding bills. India’s technology hub, Bengaluru, with its dying lakes and mushrooming urban growth, is facing a similar situation – it has overexploited its groundwater and is now struggling to keep up with the demand, according to an expert. “We are using groundwater like an overdrawn credit card and we don’t have the capacity to repay,” said Samrat Basak of World Resources Institute India (WRI India) expanding on an analysis by the global research organisation. The WRI India analysis, accessed by Mongabay-India, notes that…

Twelve hours after two commuters were killed in an overcrowded train at St Thomas Mount on Monday evening, a similar accident claimed four lives at the same station on Tuesday morning. Four men -- Shivakumar (19), Bharat(16), Naveen Kumar (25) and Shankar (age unknown) -- were killed, while six others injured when their shoulder bags hit the 5-feet railway cement fence at the station. They were travelling on the footboard of the overcrowded Chennai Beach to Tirumalpur express that reached St Thomas Mount Railway station at 8.20am. According to a spokesperson from Southern Railways, the fence was constructed to prevent…