GENRE: In Focus

This is the first of a two part story looking at the soil subsidence incidents in Joshimath and what the future holds for the affected residents Probably for the first time in recent years, the 20,000 plus population of Joshimath, a picturesque town situated at a height of 6000 feet in the Garwal Himalayan foothills of Uttarakhand, prayed that there should not be any more rain and snow. But their prayers went unanswered. It did snow heavily in the past week, and the meteorological department offered no consolation with prediction of “heavy rain and snow from January 23rd till January…

The continued prevalence of certain infectious diseases in Mumbai highlights the need for improved urban planning for the city. For over a decade now, Dr Rajesh (name changed) has been seeing his patients complain about the same illnesses year after year at his civic-run dispensary situated inside Kurla’s slums. The most common of them all, he says, is tuberculosis and scabies. Kurla falls under Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s L ward, which registered a total of 1,013 TB cases in 2021. Since 2012, the ward has registered a total of 10,326 TB cases, the highest among all the 24 wards. “I cater…

Tharun*, a 10-year-old boy, was living on the streets of north Chennai with his family. They made a living by collecting recyclable waste from the nearby dump yard in Kodungaiyur. The three-member family of a father, a mother, and a son, would wait until the shops in the area shut down for the day so that they could make their beds on the pavement outside the shops. On many days, the shopkeepers would water the pavement to prevent the homeless in Chennai from sleeping in front of their shops. Hardships in such a life were aplenty for the family. One…

The leather tanning industry employs 4.42 million workers in India and accounts for 13% of global leather production. However, the dark side of this industry is that leatherwork exposes its workers to several chemicals, most of which are carcinogenic or have substances that can cause cancer. Research reports the increase in risks for a number of cancers among tannery workers, highlighting their occupational exposure and the allied vulnerability. The tannery workers in Bengaluru are aware of the hazards. C Pasha, who collects skins or hides for the curing units, was quoted in an article saying "people in this work die…

One of the main functions of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) is to prepare the Master Plan for the Chennai Metropolitan Area (CMA) that extends over 1189 sq. km. and comprises Chennai Corporation, 8 Municipalities, 11 Town Panchayats and 179 villages covered in 10 Panchayats Unions. The CMDA has now started the preparatory works for the Third Master Plan which is likely to be notified by December 2025 or April 2026. As part of the preparation of the 20-year (2026 to 2046) vision document for the Third Master Plan for Chennai, the CMDA has been conducting visioning workshops and…

"My friend lost his life ten years ago due to bike racing on the roads in Chennai. Another friend suffered multiple fractures. I do not condone bike racing ever. It is the most reckless thing to do when you are young," says Vishnu*, who once used to race bikes on the roads in Chennai but has since given up the pursuit. Street racing is especially of concern in a city like Chennai as it has had the highest number of road accidents in India among all the metros, as per 2021 NCRB records. A major cause of road accidents is overspeeding, according…

"Nobody wants to pay the common electricity bill this time. It is Rs. 500 per household now. Earlier, it hardly used to cross Rs. 150 per household," says G Varsha, a resident of KK Nagar. She lives in an apartment with seven units. "We are shocked at the common EB bill and are hoping that they will reduce it soon hearing public demands." Her apartment has common lights, and a water motor as part of the common electrical connection. With Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Limited (TANGEDCO) raising the EB tariff for almost all sectors in September 2022, we…

Final voter lists have been released for Shivajinagar, Mahadevapura and Chickpet, the assembly constituencies at the heart of the illegal voter data collection issue in Bengaluru. With this, electoral rolls have been completed for all 28 assembly constituencies in the city, based on the special summary revision organised by the State Election Commission between November 9th and December 8th in 2022. The lists for Bengaluru were finalised by the BBMP revenue department, the agency in charge of handling election logistics within city limits. With the illegal voter data cloud still looming over election agencies, officials promised to put their best…

With traffic and congestion in the city increasing day by day, Koyambedu, which is home to the Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus (CMBT), the Omni bus terminus and the wholesale fruit and vegetable market has been facing bottlenecks on a daily basis. In an attempt to decongest the traffic, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) has proposed to shift the operation of Omni buses and Mofussil buses that ply to the southern parts of Tamil Nadu to Kilambakkam where a Rs 393-crore bus terminus is being built. The construction of the Kilambakkam bus terminus near Vandalur in Chennai is nearing completion.…

Whether a stampede may recur at a railway station you use everyday, whether property prices in your suburb will appreciate with the addition of a modern mass transit system, whether decrepit chawl buildings will be redeveloped before they collapse, each of these quintessentially Mumbai concerns, are or should be, addressed through an urban planning exercise. Unknown to us, urban planners’ designs and agencies implementing them dictate how far from work we live, how we commute to work, what quality of life we may enjoy, how tools such as floor space index and transferable development rights may densify a particular area,…