GENRE: In Focus

For nearly a decade, Kamatchi* harboured dreams of becoming a District Collector. She was regular at school and did not miss any classes. She was certain that once she achieved her dreams she would be able to allocate new houses for the residents of Kannappar Thidal, where she lived with her family. But the increasing instances of child marriages in Chennai, especially in its resettlement colonies, have shattered the dreams of many like Kamatchi. "We have been here all our lives near the Ripon Building where many IAS officers work. I wanted to enter that building only as an IAS…

As proposals of building new skywalks in the city meet with stiff public opposition, Mumbai faces the dilemma of whether to continue building skywalks or to gradually phase them out.  Skywalks are elevated pedestrian walkways connecting various heavily targeted destinations either to railway stations or to other high-concentration commercial areas. The purpose of the skywalks is the efficient dispersal of commuters from congested areas to strategic locations, such as bus stations, taxi stands, shopping areas, etc, according to the MMRDA website. But opinions are divided on whether skywalks as an infrastructure project are useful or not. While the government is convinced…

Streeties or free-living dogs (FLDs) are frequently at the centre of much controversy regarding human-animal conflict and zoonotic diseases like rabies. These issues can cause trauma and claim lives. It is, hence, our collective responsibility to address it. Some experts are of the opinion that the only viable approach is the complete eradication of these dogs. But is this approach workable in India? Should other approaches also be considered? Are there certain beliefs that make some people insist on one approach over the other? What should our considerations be when we discuss what is the right approach for India? There…

Ever wondered what happens at public consultations for major government projects across Chennai? “Usually at these hearings, they want to show that they have taken the consent from a wide array of people; from well-off residents to a few fishermen. But when we are given a chance to speak, it is only in terms of ‘yes or no'," says Velayudam, a fisherman who had attended a public consultation on the construction of stormwater drains in East Coast Road. Velayudam wanted to speak about how such a project negatively affects the lives of fishing communities living in Sholinganallur. He was of…

வண்ணாரப்பேட்டை டெக்ஸ்டைல் பார்க்குக்குள் நுழையும் பகுதி - பரபரப்பான காலை, சாலையின் இருபுறமும் மின்னல் வேகத்தில் கடந்து செல்லும் வாகனங்கள், எதையோ தொலைத்துவிட்டு திரிவதை போல உம்மென்று ஹெட்செட்டில் மூழ்கியிருக்கும் மனிதர்கள் - இவற்றுக்கிடையே ஒரு தடவைக்கு வெறும் 30 நொடிகளை மட்டுமே வாய்ப்பாக அளித்திருக்கும் சிக்னல் விளக்கை பார்த்த படி சாலையை தன் கைகளாலேயே தவழ்ந்து கடக்கவேண்டும் என்கிற வரத்தோடு சாலையை கடக்க தயார் நிலையில் இருக்கும் ஒரு தவழும் மாற்றுத்திறனாளியை இன்று சந்தித்தேன். அவருடனான உரையாடலின் ஒரு பகுதி. வாழ்வாதாரம் தேடி அண்ணே ‘வணக்கம்’ என கூறி என்னை அறிமுகப்படுத்திக் கொண்டதுடன், என்ன வேலை செய்றீங்க? எங்கிருந்து வரீங்க? என அவருடனான எனது உரையாடலை தொடங்கினேன். நான் தீவுதிடல் பக்கத்துல இருக்குற திடீர் நகர் பகுதியில தான் பொறந்து வளந்தேன் தம்பி. நான் மட்டும் இல்ல எங்க தாத்தா காலத்துல இருந்து அங்கதான் இருந்தோம். சின்னவயசில இருந்தே இளம்பிள்ளை…

The 10.58 km-long coastal road project has faced opposition from environmentalists, urban planners and fisher communities ever since the construction first began in 2018. The road, being built on the promise of effectively reducing city traffic, runs from Princess Street at Marine Drive to the Worli end of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. This under-construction part of the project is under the umbrella of the larger plan that stretches up to 29 km and connects Marine Drive to Kandivali. On October 7th, 120 architectural firms under the banner of Mumbai Architect Collective (MAC) wrote a letter to Ashwini Bhide, Additional Municipal…

Today more than half of Chennai has been dug up for the laying of new stormwater drains (SWD) network to ensure that the city doesn’t get flooded again. But the problem doesn’t end with just laying the drains but in ensuring that they actually serve the purpose for which they are being laid. The Raja Street RWA and Poonga View RWA stepped up to monitor the Mandaveli SWD work thereby avoiding issues around flooding at the time when the rains arrive. Yearly auditing process of Mandaveli SWD Clean entry points for the water on the roads to enter them, proper…

Almost all of us have fond memories of visiting a zoo and seeing a zebra or giraffe for the first time. The pleasure and knowledge children derive from a visit to the zoo cannot be overstated. It is, therefore, essential to run zoos in a manner that balances the interests of the animals along with the comfort and convenience of the visitor. Some of the main challenges zoos face across the globe are lack of space, social stress, managing visitors, and maintaining the health of their animals. Besides food poisoning, zoo animals also suffer due to animal-human conflict and lack…

The usual suspects blamed for plastic pollution are littering, slums and a dysfunctional garbage collection system. But contrary to popular belief, even when waste makes it to landfills, it's not all that secure. Pollution from landfills accounts for 45% of the plastic - a whopping 4.1 million metric tonnes in 2015 - lost in the environment.  Mumbai's landfills are terrible offenders. A recent study, titled 'Risk of plastics losses to the environment from Indian landfills', and published in the Elsevier Journal Resources, Conservation and Recycling assessed the risk of plastic pollution posed by landfills in 496 urban Indian cities.  Mumbai topped the charts.…

Residents need street vendors in Chennai, to buy fruits, vegetables, and even small ornaments or jewellery. The latter need residents to buy their wares because that's how they make both ends meet. On the face of it, residents and vendors share a symbiotic relationship in Chennai. But conflicts between these two groups seem to erode their relationship, undermining the chance of peaceful co-existence and creating a contentious issue out of street vending in principle.  Vendors claim that evictions could affect their livelihoods. Residents claim that the latter occupy footpaths and improperly dump waste, among other issues.  Citizen Matters organised a panel…