GENRE: Voices

The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) is over, marking another close to global discourse on climate emergency. Amidst proclamations made on a global and national scale, Mumbai became the first Indian city to receive an 'A' on the CDP's 5th Annual Cities Report, which rates cities on the basis of their environmental action and transparency. To know and understand the details of this, Citizen Matters spoke to Saurabh Punamiya Jain, the former research and policy secretary to the former Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Aaditya Thackeray. He played an important part in drafting the Mumbai Climate Action Plan…

In a city that is increasingly concretised and with dwindling green cover, small pockets of green gardens are a sight for sore eyes. While there are avenue trees and public parks, the residents can do their bit to increase the greenery by opting to maintain terrace gardens.  Terrace gardens are no novelty, but the number of people taking the activity up in Chennai could stand to increase. While neighbourhoods in Chennai have come together to maintain community gardens, there is huge potential for the same networks to also disseminate information and help residents set up their own terrace gardens on…

For a conference sponsored by Coca-cola, it is not surprising that representatives of the most-polluting fossil fuel industries at the COP27 increased by 25% from last year, overshadowing the number of representatives from any global south nation. Moreover, COP27, which concluded recently, failed to highlight the irreversible damage caused by fossil fuels. The brief mention of fossil fuels was related to phasing out “inefficient" fossil fuel subsidies and not all fossil fuel subsidies. The pollutant’s very name was explicitly avoided in the final key decisions draft, despite India pushing for a Fossil Fuel phase-down. The slippery language used for the…

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has allocated crores of rupees to beautify wards, yet, participatory planning has been abandoned altogether. There is a greater need for involvement of citizens in actively monitoring the work being undertaken in their ward and demanding accountability from the municipality. Complaints of irregularities in the tendering process also alarm us, considering the lack of consultation with citizens during the planning or implementation stages. In an ideal world, all that would be expected of a citizen is that they would pay their taxes and enjoy the benefits and comforts authorities offer, in the form of good…

Rani has had debilitatingly painful periods ever since she started relying on injectable contraceptives. When she reached out to her doctor for help, she was told to be patient and that “this happens, it is quite normal.” But it does make it very difficult for her to manage her periods. Not only does she have to take care of household responsibilities, but she also has to go do her job as a door-to-door garbage collector in the hilly terrains of Shimla. But however painful or uncomfortable it gets, she knows she cannot afford to take menstrual leave. For door-to-door garbage collectors…

A raft of proposals for the beautification of Mumbai was announced recently amid well-orchestrated publicity. The project which is estimated to cost Rs 1700 crore is slated to be completed by March 2023. Neighbouring Thane will be forking out Rs 100 crore for a similar beautification project. The "Mumbai Beautification Plan" includes beautification of road dividers, improvement of footpaths, installation of street furniture and street lights, the beautification of traffic islands, optimum usage of public spaces underneath bridges, maintenance of toilets and creation of wall paintings and murals. Even the most politically naïve citizen will refuse to believe that these…

The Navi Mumbai Draft Development Plan 2018-2038 is the first development plan to be formulated since the formation of the Municipal Corporation. When Navi Mumbai was conceptualised, planning authorities wanted to decongest Mumbai and shift industrial and housing demands to Navi Mumbai. Housing has always been one of the primary concerns for the financial capital of the country. The City Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO), a planning authority in Navi Mumbai, was therefore tasked with the responsibility of identifying land for industrial, residential, commercial usage, etc. [Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) is the planning authority of Navi Mumbai, but CIDCO and…

In his office inside a park in Ward 176, Councillor V Anandam sits with the residents and Assistant Engineer and makes plans on how he can be more accessible to people. "Let us put up your face and phone number on a flex board in different areas so that more people can reach out to you," suggests a resident. "Yes, that is a good idea," he says. "After the rains, all the 400 plus streets in our ward will have a board with my phone number for them to reach me easily. This will invite the people of Ward 176…

Countless promises and mere lipservice display the lack of political will to tackle the mammoth problem of pothole-ridden roads in Bengaluru, even as several reports highlight the spike in fatality caused by them. Citizen Matters on November 18th hosted a Twitter Spaces, titled 'What will it take to make Bengaluru free of potholes?', where several civic leaders voiced their discontent when it came to road management in Bengaluru and offered solutions and avenues for civic action. Vaidya R, who traced the road management by the Electronics City Industrial Township Authority (ELCITA) which yielded peak road and pothole-free roads, highlighted the…

Learning outcomes in government schools have been greatly impacted by the pandemic. There has also been a record number of enrollments in government schools in the city due to the economic impact of COVID-19. To improve the prospects of students in government schools in Chennai, fluency in English has also been made a key focus, with English classes being piloted across government schools. A tailor-made programme for government school students to gain proficiency in the English language has also been launched by Citizens for Law and Democracy (CLAD). We currently operate in three schools in Chennai, reaching out to nearly…