GENRE: In Focus

In cities, flyovers and elevated walkways enable movement of vehicles and people. In the hill regions, tunnels perform the same function, as can be seen in Europe and Scandinavia. Shimla is no exception to this. “When Britishers conceptualised Shimla, they considered tunnels an important component of mobility, especially for pedestrians and built five such tunnels in the town,” says Rakesh Sharma, a retired IAS officer. “The importance of the tunnels still remains a key component of urban mobility plans in the hills”, adds Sharma, who was associated with the framing of Shimla’s Interim Development Plan (SDP), which was first finalised…

Just a few weeks back, Pune’s health authorities were battling a severe shortage of hospital beds for COVID patients. Now, they are faced with an acute shortage of medical oxygen and oxygen-equipped beds. “We require three times more oxygen supply during the pandemic than in the past,” says Prof Dr Dhanaji Jadhav of MIMER Medical College and Dr Bhausaheb Sardesai Talegaon Rural Hospital. “Besides COVID patients, other patients – pregnant women, cancer patients, those who suffered from heart attack, critical infants and those who have to undergo emergency operations – also need oxygen. What we are seeing now is a shortage…

Punkaj Bajaj, who retired as CEO and MD of Steel Authority of India’s Durgapur Steel Plant, thought he had all the time to finish the renovation work  of his  8th floor two bedroom apartment, in time for his son’s wedding slated for end April. Familiar with the ways of labour and  everything else that such renovation entails, Bajaj had factored in four days to break the old mosaic floor and lay new vitrified tiles in the living room of his flat built by the Ghaziabad Development Authority almost 30 years ago. With that calculation, Bajaj got the old floor of the living…

During the virtual celebration of World Environment Day on June 5th this year, Prakash Javadekar, India’s minister for environment, forests and climate change, launched the Nagar Van project. The scheme aims to create urban forest cover in 200 cities across the country in the next five years. Oddly enough, in 2016 Javadekar launched the exact same scheme at a commemorative function at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Borivali, Mumbai. None of the experts The Third Pole’s correspondent spoke to were aware of any progress on the scheme. Nor is any government data available on what goals were achieved on planting “200 city forests” between 2016…

A survey conducted by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palik in November last year said there were 4,246 homeless people in the city. As many as 3,380 of them are males, 857 females and nine sexual minorities. They live in and around the city railway station, bus station, footpaths and empty plots. Civil society organisations had proposed then that the BBMP set up 77 shelters for the homeless, including separate ones for women. While these are the official figures, the number of shelterless is clearly far higher. The current availability of working shelters, 10 by official claim, is nowhere near the…

Launched in 2015, Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), has come a long way. The programme made sure that cleanliness and sanitation found a place in India’s governance landscape. The programme was aimed at transforming the behaviour of the masses on issues of sustainable waste management.  To further strengthen and evaluate the performance of the mission, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India (GoI) kick started India’s first and largest cleanliness survey, Swachh Survekshan in 2016. Since, then the survey has evolved significantly, engaging citizens, administrative systems and civil society towards creating a robust waste management system. Swachh…

 “The concept of a second home, especially within a radius of 20 to 40 kms from the city has really picked up post-COVID,” said Monil Parikh, Real Estate Expert, Parikh Infracon Pvt Ltd and former chair of Young Indians--Confederation of India Industries (CII). “People realise that an isolated, self-sufficient farm house where they can go and relax and their families can stay safe is a good investment. The demand for such homes, from areas around Shilaj to Racharda, has increased by around 40 per cent.”  Of course, not everyone can afford this, but Ahmedabad has plenty of people with the resources…

Greater Chennai Corporation has kickstarted the vertical gardens project under 14 selected flyovers in Chennai. According to a news report, the spaces under the flyovers at IIT-M traffic junction, North Usman Road flyover, Mint, Doveton, Pantheon Road, Perambur, Mahalingapuram, Usman Road, TTK Road, Kauvery hospital, Royapettah high road, G P Moopanar flyover, LB Road and Gandhi Mandapam will get vertical green cover.  This is a utilitarian move aimed at better use of public spaces in order to mitigate carbon emissions on Chennai roads. GCC is following in the footsteps of developed cities such as Singapore that has made the concept…

Flanked by the Outer Ring Road, where unceasing traffic spews noxious fumes, and a concreted canal where heaps of plastic float amid sewage, the Hennur Lake Biodiversity Park is an incongruous speck of green in a wide swath of concrete. And for a few slender loris individuals, it is an unlikely home. As implausible as it may seem, gray slender lorises (Loris lydekkerianus) have clung to life while the city’s concrete-scape has cornered them into this 34-acre park. At least 4-5 individuals of the beady-eyed, small, elusive primate species has been spotted in the canopies of the park. Surveys conducted between…

On September 8 2020, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India released an SOP for partial reopening of schools from September 21st and for students of classes 9 to 12 on a voluntary basis to clarify doubts and take guidance from their teachers, in keeping with the government’s phase-wise unlocking activities. This has facilitated partial reopening of schools in several cities in India starting this week, though parents remain uncertain and concerned, and schools are also mulling over how to get back to the regular regimen in view of the prevailing COVID-19 situation. Schools grappling with multiple…