GENRE: Voices

In November 2021, scores of Chennai residents came together for a cause dubbed the Umbrella Rally. They marched in numbers, urging the authorities to take stock of climate change and the impact it is set to have on the most vulnerable. The recently released report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) lists Chennai as one of the global cities at risk due to climate change. With Chennai experiencing extremes in the form of drought and flooding in recent years, it is crucial to assess and mitigate the impact that the city will face due to climate change.  Protecting…

With the inexorable progress of the urbanization process, we have seen a steady growth in the number of personal vehicles resulting in congestion, pollution and less walk-friendly city streets. The design of the road infrastructure, in attempting to accommodate the increase in vehicles, makes it less convenient and safe for walking, and hence makes it a non-preferred mode for non-captive users. Which is to say, that those who have no option but to walk, do so with great difficulty and at great risk to themselves, while others simply avoid walking and take to motorised transport. As a result, not only…

This is the second in our series of Cycle2Work interviews from men and women employed in diverse sectors. The series will bring to you stories of these green commuters who cycle to work. We hope that these stories will inspire and encourage more Bengalureans to cycle, and not drive, to work’ Karthik Ranganathan is an engineer with Texas Instruments in Bengaluru and has been cycling to work for over 10 years. “I started cycling in 2011 and found no reason why I should not cycle to work”. Karthik finds cycling saved lot of commute time and events like annual cycle…

On March 21st, Citizen Matters hosted a tweet chat to discuss the recently launched Mumbai Climate Plan (MCAP) with Lubaina Rangawala, Tanmay Takle and Saurabh Punamiya. After its inception in 2021, the MCAP was opened up to suggestions and criticisms from citizens, environmental experts and other stakeholders. This creates an opportunity for the city to work with the government towards an effective climate policy, as we stand at a critical juncture in Mumbai’s climate history. The tweet chat addressed points from the Plan to understand whether the Mumbai government is truly prepared for the climate crisis, and where the city…

A new Mayor and Council are in place at Ripon Buildings. And in keeping with that there is plenty of hope. The Worshipful Mayor, in keeping with the ideology of her party, has resurrected the Singara Chennai slogan. A new plan had earlier been unveiled by the Chief Minister under the name Singara Chennai 2.0. There is no doubt that the Mayor and Council will focus on making that vision a reality, given that she is from the same political party. And there is no doubt the opposition will protest, chiefly because it is the ruling party’s idea. The interests…

BBMP has spent over 100 crores on fixing, remodelling, and maintaining drains in just one ward – HSR Layout. Their Stormwater Drain Department does not maintain records like work registers or the progress reports of works. BBMP has been indicted for ineffective and inefficient collection of waste, non-compliance with waste management rules, and lack of scientific processing facilities at landfill sites. These are just three instances of impropriety and poor performance in local government bodies. All these are issues that citizens should demand accountability from their elected reps and officials. One easy way to be aware of such issues is…

The lack of enough accessible public toilets has long been an issue in Chennai. Lessons from the pandemic and the emphasis on hygiene has made clean toilets all the more important for the city’s many residents. Recycle Bin, an NGO, has multiple ideas to make Chennai’s public toilets accessible and clean, in addition to a larger toilet masterplan at the policy level. Citizen Matters spoke to Ganga Dileep C, Founder-CEO and Principal Architect and Urban Designer at Recycle Bin on the various programmes in place and the possible roadmap for change for Chennai public toilets.  What does Recycle Bin do?…

Congestion and pollution in Mumbai is an ever-increasing, annual problem. By 2030, transport emissions will replace industrial fumes to become the biggest contributor to air pollution in Mumbai. One wonders, then, why the demand for a livelihood in what is now arguably a difficult city to live in, is still so high. Why do citizens put up with slow development and still pay the highest taxes? Metro work seems to have slowed down, while other bridges and coastal roads continue to be prioritised. Potholes, illegal parking and unattended vehicles obstructing pathways are ignored in many parts of town. As Mumbai…

If last year’s BBMP budget is any indicator, health and education are likely to once again be at the lower end of the allocation scale this year too. With no elected Council, BBMP had sought suggestions directly from citizens on what the 2022-2023 city budget should focus on. It is probably safe to assume that health and education were high on people’s priorities, especially with the impacts of COVID. Yet, infrastructure seems to be the BBMP’s favourite, despite the myriad problems citizens are facing with ongoing delayed and incomplete projects. In the 2021-2022 budget, BBMP's total outlay was Rs 9,286…

On February 1st, the finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting the union budget for 2022-23, announced a plan to steer urban planning and development, referring to the fact that by 2047, half of India’s population will be urban. Her budget speech proposed nurturing of megacities to become centres of economic growth and preparing tier 2 and 3 to take on a similar path in the future. Her proposal included setting up a high-level committee consisting of urban planners, urban economists and institutions to make recommendations on urban sector policies, capacity building, planning, implementation, and governance.  As our cities grow larger,…