GENRE: In Focus

“I was thrilled when the government issued an ordinance to control air quality in the NCR,” says 76-year old Mithilesh Kumar of Seemantak Vihar near the Delhi-Ghaziabad border. But as crackers shattered the relative quiet of his area, Mithilesh, an asthma patient who thought he was safe this year from cracker smoke polluted air, wanted to lodge a complaint with the new commission. “But I did not know whom to complain to. My grandson tried to find out from the net, but could not.” Not far away, Chandra Aggarwal, 43, was so gung-ho, she had hoped her use of nebulizer…

This article is part of our special series Environmental Sustainability & Climate Change in Tier II cities supported by Climate Trends. The colonial summer capital is taking some key steps on the energy front in its goal of becoming a green city. Presently, 67 government buildings are switching over to solar power and more than 1,000  street lights are working on solar energy. Also, dozens of city hotels are maximising their use of solar energy systems, while several residential buildings have installed photovoltaic technologies to cut down their monthly power bills. “This is our 2021-22 mission for a green city project…

Pedestrians are among the most endangered population category of Hyderabad, the sixth most populous urban agglomeration in India and the fourth largest in terms of area. “One-third of accident victims in Hyderabad were pedestrians,” according to Telangana Director General of Police, M Mahender Reddy.  Given the current state of the pedestrian walkways and footpaths, this comes as no surprise. The rapid cheek-by-jowl urbanisation over the last four decades has put a heavy burden on Hyderabad’s infrastructure, especially its transportation and road network. The few pavements that do exist are in very poor condition with about 95% of them encroached by…

[In Part 1 of this series we saw that sex workers in Bengaluru are facing starvation and violence due to the COVID lockdown. In Part 2, we explore why they haven't been able to access aid and support, and how this could change.]  “What is there to feel sorry? They have created their own problems out of greed and lust” says Shamim, waiting for a relative near the Majestic bus station. Shamim was responding to my question: “Where are the women who used to hang out here at night? Any idea how these poor souls are managing?” He hesitantly confesses that…

Translated by Sandhya Raju சில தினங்களுக்கு முன், சென்னையில் வெள்ளத்தால் பாதிப்புக்கு உள்ளாகும் பகுதி குறித்து எழுதியிருந்தோம். 2018 ஆம் ஆண்டு சென்னை மாநகராட்சியும் கடும் பாதிப்புக்கு உள்ளாகக் கூடும் பகுதிகள் என இவற்றை அடையாளப்படுத்தியிருந்தது. வெள்ளத்தை தடுக்க மாநகராட்சி என்ன செய்துள்ளது? வெள்ளத்தடுப்பு நடவடிக்கையாக, ஒருங்கிணைந்த மழைநீர் வடிகால் (SWD) நெட்வொர்க்கை வட சென்னையில் கொசஸ்தாலாறு பகுதியிலும், தென் சென்னையில் கோவளத்திலும் கட்டுமான பணியை சென்னை மாநகராட்சி மேற்கொண்டுள்ளது. ஆசிய வங்கியின் நிதியுதவி பெற்றுள்ள இந்த திட்டத்தின் கீழ் மழை வெள்ளத்தை தடுக்க சாலையோரம் வடிகால் அமைத்தல், நீர்நிலைகளை புத்துயிர் செய்தல் ஆகியவற்றை நோக்கமாக கொண்டுள்ளது. அக்டோபர் 29-ம் தேதி பெய்த கடும் மழையில் கொரட்டூர் சுரங்கப்பாதையில் நீர் தேங்கியுள்ள காட்சி படம்: அவினாஷ் டி சென்னை மாநகராட்சி உள்கட்டமைப்பு திட்டங்களை தவறாக நிர்வகிக்கிறது என்பதற்கு பல நிகழ்வுகள் உள்ளன, இதுவே வெள்ள அபாயத்தை அதிகரிக்க வழிவகுக்கிறது. உதாரணமாக,…

[In Part 1 of this series, we saw how Bengaluru's lakes used to provide food and livelihoods to communities living around them, and how this has been lost over time. In this part, we explore solutions to the problem.] The afforestation and tree planting schemes around Bengaluru's lakes do not seem to believe livelihood is a priority. For example, the banks of Kalkere lake now sport a variety of exotic species including palm trees, instead of honge and tamarind trees that local residents once depended on. Even lake rejuvenation often has been for recreational value, with the lake bed scooped out…

Every day is a struggle for 20-year-old R Jagadeesan. Slumped into his wooden chair at his 1 BHK home at Medavakkam, he is desperately thinking of ways to earn some money and pay off his debts. A street vendor who ran into heavy losses during the testing times of the pandemic, he had pinned all hopes on Deepavali. The festival of lights has always provided Jagadeesan an opportunity to make some quick money. Every Deepavali, he works as a helper in a fireworks shop for a week and earns a decent pay of Rs 10,000 - Rs 12,000 for that period.…

It had been over 25 years since Neelamma N Reddy went scouring for greens in Varthur lake.   The lake was a veritable buffet of greens and fish for her. She’d find over 30 varieties of fish and small crabs that could be scooped up from its banks. “Then, there were 4-5 types of greens we’d pick up. Some herbs, like Bassale soppu (Malabar Spinach) were used to treat constipation or piles. The banks had guava, coconut and jamun trees from which children used to collect fruits,” she says.  Bengaluru’s growth turned Varthur into a part of the city’s Information Technology…

As the city woke up to heavy rainfall a fortnight ago, Korattur lake once again faced the threat of a fresh bout of contamination with sewage-laden rainwater. If not for the intervention of pro-active citizens, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) would have cleared the surplus water canal to the Korattur Lake, to allow toxic water into the lake.  This is not the first time, though. GCC officials have been doing it every monsoon so as to prevent flooding in the roads of Ambattur and Korattur.  The absence of an underground sewerage system in the area and effluent treatment plants results…

The approaching festival of lights was beginning to bring people out shopping to CP, Sarojini Nagar, Lajpat Nagar and every other market. But alarm bells started ringing when the daily COVID figures crossed the 6000 mark on November 3rd and stayed that way for the next few days. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal suspected it could be a third wave of the deadly virus. The timing was particularly worrisome. It was a double whammy, dampening the festival spirit and raising fears of poor air quality accelerating the spread of COVID-19 spread and its effects. The number of cases in the capital has surged again. Hospitals are…