Civic

As the city celebrated Madras Week this month, the results of the Swachh Survekshan survey – an initiative under Swachh Bharat to monitor cleanliness in different cities and towns in India – were released as well. It seems to be a mixed bag for Chennai. While our city has jumped up the rankings from the 61st place last year to the 45th this year, it also achieved the dubious distinction of being tagged the third dirtiest city in the category of those with a population of more than 1 million, with only Patna and East Delhi below it. Authorities unhappy…

As a migrant resident of Bengaluru, I find that many policies of this city, which are not always acknowledged enough by its citizens, have made life easier and better than in other metros. As a responsible citizen, I believe, while holding the government accountable for its shortcomings, it is also equally important to credit them for the good and the positive. Here, I mention a few policies and trends in Bangalore that I have personally appreciated. I strongly feel that if cities such as Chennai adopted similar policies, it would help to make them more citizen-friendly. Citizen–prioritised approach to public…

Cities struggle to manage COVID-19 cases, as the second wave of infection sets in After a decline in new cases in the month of August, Mumbai is experiencing a second wave of infection. Mumbai registered a total of 30,474 cases in the entire August and it has already witnessed 15,227 cases in the first nine days of September. Pune stands as the most infected district in Maharashtra with 2,23,710 cases followed by Mumbai with 1,65,306 and Thane with 1,52,934. Similarly, Delhi broke all its past records of the highest single-day spike on September 9th when it registered 4,039 cases taking…

BBMP Council's term ends, administrator appointed On Thursday, state government appointed IAS officer Gaurav Gupta as the administrator of BBMP, since the five-year term of the BBMP Council ended. Gaurav Gupta is the Principal Secretary of Commerce and Industries Department, and has taken additional charge as BBMP administrator. He will take decisions related to the city until the new Council is formed. Former corporators alleged that the administrator's appointment was a clear sign that the government wanted to avoid the election, and that it's a violation of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act. State government had cited the pandemic as well…

COVID-19: Penalty targets for Corporation officials; fever camps to be scaled down In order to ensure that citizens adhere to COVID safety norms, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has been imposing a penalty on citizens who have been found to violate those. A target has also been set for fine collection by various officials of the civic body. As per the norms stated, an assistant engineer should collect a minimum of Rs 3,000 every day and other authorities should collect Rs 1,000 a day. Each zone in the city is tasked with collecting a minimum of Rs 1 lakh a…

ICMR allows walk-in test for COVID-19  As per the new directive issued by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) to states and union territories, people can now go for walk-in tests and will not be requiring a doctor's reference for getting tested. The new advisory comes as a response to an order by the Delhi High Court which said that people with no symptoms - which forms a large base of COVID-19 patients in the country - must be able to get themselves tested.  The guideline recommends adoption of "simplified modalities" for testing, implying that no restrictive measures should be implemented by…

Rules for travel in Namma Metro As Namma Metro services are set to resume on September 7, the BMRCL (Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd) has drawn up an SoP (Standard Operating Procedure) for using the services. The number of commuters in each train is limited to 400. Not more than 50 passengers will be allowed to enter stations, except in terminals and interchange stations. Masks are mandatory. Passengers have been advised to use alternate steps on escalators. Only four to six passengers will be allowed to use lifts and they have to stand on foot-mark stickers. There will be yellow…

On September 3rd, Chennai recorded 968 fresh COVID cases and 29 deaths. There are 12,059 active cases in the city.  Infographic summary of COVID-19 cases in Chennai as on September 4th. Graphic: GCC/Twitter In a bid to track patients who have been discharged after treatment for COVID-19 from the Government Kilpauk Medical College (KMC), the institution is launching a dedicated post-COVID-19 care clinic. The hospital has seen 7,022 COVID patients so far and 6,232 patients have been discharged. A dedicated ward is being set-up for this purpose. Patients who were treated for more than 28 days will receive follow-up treatment…

The first announcement of a nationwide lockdown in March brought in its wake anxiety, panic, confusion. Shutting down of offices and factories, public transport, day-care and other services hit the economy badly. Companies introduced ‘work from home’ options, cities struggled to provide basic services and amenities while maintaining safety regulations, public transport came to a stop, and the unpreparedness of our health care facilities to tackle the pandemic stood out stark and clear. In all this, the one question that has dominated mindspace is: How long can we lock down the nation? We need to move-on but safely. The world…

7.7 contacts traced for every COVID patient In the last one week, BBMP has stepped up contact tracing efforts. On average, 7.7 contacts were traced for every person who has tested positive. The BBMP COVID-19 War Room's analysis shows that, over the past week, the highest number of contacts were traced in Bommanahalli zone - 14.2 contacts for every positive case; and the least in Yelahanka zone - 5.7. South Zone is carrying out the highest number of tests. Between August 1 and 25, 76,957 tests have been conducted here - that is, an average of 3,078 tests per day.…