GENRE: In Focus

On a humid Sunday afternoon, the lanes of Anakaputhur, an interior suburb of Pallavaram, wear a dim look, with barely any shops open or civilians on the road. But, as one enters Shanmuga Mudaliar Street near the Murugan temple, lively squeaks from the handloom units speak for the glory of this weavers’ town. The squeaks date back to over half-a-century ago, when the erstwhile village started developing as a handicraft centre, exporting the famous ‘Madras Real Handkerchief’ to Nigeria. An eight yard garment, Madras Real Handkerchief was worn by men and women in the African country, until it was stopped…

The alarming air quality in the National Capital region (NCR), comprised of Delhi and adjoining areas, has found fresh mention in the Economic Survey 2017-18 tabled in Parliament on January 29th. It is well known by now that the average annual levels of PM2.5 – one of the most critical contaminants in the air we breathe – remain at above three times the prescribed level in this region. The Survey reiterates the four main reasons for Delhi’s worsening air quality – crop residue and biomass burning; vehicular emissions and re-destributed road dust; construction, industries, and power plants; winter temperature inversion,…

Pavithra Sudhakar, a Hyderabad resident, used to spend about an hour travelling to her office daily. A senior software engineer in Wipro, she had to travel the 12 kms to office by cab or auto. Then, a year back, she started using the carpooling app sRide. “I tried it after getting emails from my company (sRide has a tie-up with Wipro). Since then I have been using carpooling to go to office and back, daily. My travel time is only 40 minutes now,” she says. For Pavithra, this time saving is the biggest advantage of carpooling. “The person driving the…

The decline of Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services over the years does not usually come to the fore unless there are untoward incidents such as the recent Chennai Silks fire.  But whether it is obvious or not, the deterioration in the department coupled with the general lack of fire safety awareness and preparedness in the city has meant that personnel are often incapacitated to save as many lives as could be saved. While the department boasts of having added high end engines including gigantic Bronto Sky lifts, there are too many constraints and demotivators for the personnel. Narrow roads…

In the second week of January, amidst heavy security provided by the local police and the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP), Forest Department officials -- along with the Dakshina Kannada district authorities and personnel from Mangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (MESCOM) -- began uprooting and chopped nearly 202 trees at Alake village in Padil in Mangalore city in Karnataka. The 10.09-acre area formerly under Karnataka State Forest Industries Corporation (KSFIC) at Padil - is located on National Highway 75. In 2014, the state government transferred 5.89 acres to the Revenue Department. The Alake area with survey No. 23/6A1B2, 23/4B, 23/12B,…

At a recent All India conference for senior police officials in the capital city, best performing police stations across the country were recognised and honoured. K4 Police station, Annanagar, Chennai bagged the 5th position in the country for its speedy disposal of cases, zero incidence of murder and the way visitors are handled. Citizen Matters spoke to officials at K4 to understand the distinct functioning of the police station. வண்டிகள் நேர்த்தியாக நிறுத்தி வைக்கப்பட்ட பார்கிங் ஏரியா, வரவேற்பாளர் அறை, பார்வையாளர்கள் காத்திருக்கும் பகுதி, குடிநீர் என ஒரு ஹோட்டல் போன்ற அமைப்பு கொண்டிருக்கிறது கே4 காவல் நிலையம். ஆனால் சிறந்த காவல் நிலையமாக தேர்ந்தெடுக்கப்பட்டதற்கு இதுவல்ல காரணம். ஜனவரி ஏழாம் தேதி…

The academics of substance addiction is full of definitions and statistics. The World Health Organization defines substance abuse as “persistent or sporadic drug use inconsistent with or unrelated to acceptable medical practice”. Hours have been spent on understanding the patterns. Yet, when you put a face to the problem and ask them to describe it – it very simply is about losing control. “You know it harms you. Yet you feel so helpless to fight the urge. That loss of control is possibly the hardest thing when you battle addiction.” remembers Sahana (name changed). She should know. The 38 year-old…

Chennai airport has been in the news for quite some time now. For those of us who regularly come through its portals, some of the news sounds almost comic. One of the articles in the dailies says Chennai airport is soon going to see Phase II of expansion, after which it will be like Singapore's Changi airport. Another said that there will be a tunnel to connect the passenger and cargo terminals that are proposed in Phase II.  The third report said that the airport is attempting a 10-day trial of operating the cross runway in order to increase the…

Four days before the Bhogi festival, the state Environment Minister, K C Karupannan had flagged off an awareness campaign at the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) office in Guindy with a view to ensuring an improved post-Bhogi situation in the city. “Auto rickshaws sounded a recorded message over microphones as they plied across the city, warning citizens against the hazardous pollution created by festival practices. We sensitised people in all the fifteen zones in Chennai,” said a spokesperson from the TNPCB. But all claims by the TNPCB came to nought on Bhogi day when thick smoke engulfed the city,…

For our English readers: Mandram is a global platform for like-minded people with interests in Tamil language and literature. It marks the coming together of people from different backgrounds to share their perspectives, journey and success stories for everyone to be inspired. Despite the Internet binding us all together, we still stay polarised. Mandram looks forward to be a TED in Tamil. The first ever Mandram was organised in Chennai which had speakers from varied backgrounds like science, art and culture sharing their perspectives. தமிழ் மரபை பறைசாற்றும் பொங்கல் திருநாள் ஒரு புறம் நகரத்தில் களைகட்ட, தமிழ் இலக்கியம், எழுத்து மேல் உண்டான ஆர்வம் காரணமாக…