Civic

Chandivali is an upscale residential locality in Andheri East. It is isolated and connectivity to public transport is limited. The nearest railway station on the western, Andheri station, and on the central line, Ghatkopar station, are 6 km and 4 km away respectively. This makes the citizens of the area heavily dependent on roads for commuting. Unfortunately, the roads in Chandivali are one of the worst in the city. The DP road-9, Powai is an important road that connects the Chandivali Farm Road with the Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road. The road is riddled with numerous potholes making it dangerous for commuters,…

For the past few months, there has been contention over the redesign of Gandhi Bazaar. The conflict at hand revolves around the clashes between the preservation of heritage and the construction of a modern shopping hub. The primary issue is in the inability of traders/vendors and authorities to find a compromise or middle ground that satisfies both parties. There is a lack of communication and a lack of clarity regarding the existing plans for development. While traders/vendors have objected to their recommendations not being considered, the authorities say they have documented evidence of repeated meetings and workshops held with the…

Queuing up to buy Aavin milk from the milk booths makes a quintessential Chennai morning for many of us.  However, recent steps introduced by the state government have made it difficult for many customers to be able to continue buying Aavin milk in the city. What I assumed was a simple exercise to link my Ration card and Aadhar information with the milk cards issued by Aavin turned out to be a much more complicated exercise that laid bare the failings of the system.  Read more: How to get your Aadhaar card in Chennai Chaos reigns at Aavin office When…

It's a term Bangaloreans have become quite familiar with in the past one year—white topping. I have seen this work happening in certain areas and the disruption it causes to citizens living and working along that stretch of road. But last week, white topping arrived at my doorstep and since then my wife and I have virtually been under lockdown. The roads in front of my house have been closed to traffic. Which means I cannot take my car out. The cement surface laid is so high that getting onto it is difficult without some stepping stone. We always have…

Here is the tale of two roads from Kotturpuram. A once-quiet, leafy neighbourhood made up of six roads. I say once-quiet because we are seeing that the inexorable march of beauty parlours, co-working spaces and other commercial establishments can only be delayed by a vigilant community, not denied. So we have cars parked on all sides of our roads these days, by people who want to visit the shops and clinics on Gandhi Mandapam road, but of course, it is not their responsibility to see if their cars are blocking our access to the road. We, who have been living there…

15 railway stations in Chennai soon to get a facelift The Southern Railways has planned to revamp 15 railway stations in Chennai at the cost of Rs 251.97 crore under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme. The stations that are to get the facelift includes, Guindy, Ambattur, Park, Gummidipoondi and Mambalam. The railway stations will have parking and foot-over-bridges in addition to improving the amenities like broader approach roads, installing CCTV cameras, lifts, escalators, waiting rooms, roof plazas, retail spaces and amenities for persons with disability. Source: The Times of India Read more: Facing a medical emergency in Chennai railway stations?…

Sturdy nets to cover manholes The BMC will now install specially designed protection nets beneath manhole covers to prevent accidents such as people falling into open manholes during floods in the city. The civic engineers have suggested a prototype made from stainless steel with better durability. The nets that are used to cover 1900 manholes at present, are made of ductile metal. The civic body is likely to complete before the next monsoon. Source: Free Press Journal Robots for sewer cleaning The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has installed sewer-cleaning robot to prevent manual scavenging in the city. The sewer tanks,…

2,900 acres of urban forest land encroached In the total 16,988 acres of forest land in Bengaluru Urban district, there are 1,051 cases of encroachment, violating 2,871.37 acres, said Environment and Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre. In the Bannerghatta National Park division alone, 587.15 acres of the forest have 347 cases of encroachment. In Bengaluru South, 1,277.33 acres of forest land show 283 encroachments. Bengaluru East's 570 acres have 250 encroachments, Yelahanka has 20 cases and Bengaluru North's 45.01 acres have 65 encroachment cases. Encroachers have been charged under the Karnataka Forest Act, 1963 and clearances are being sought under Section…

"One of the first things I did as soon as I took charge as a Councillor was to ensure that the frontline workers in my ward were treated with respect. I gathered all the sanitary workers and the local officials in my ward and instructed that the frontline workers, especially the women who are often ill-treated, should be treated with respect. This includes gestures like providing them with a seat during a conversation," says Ambedvalavan (A) Kumarasamy, Councillor of Ward 73. Most of the people in Ward 73 are the people from the economically weaker section who are discriminated against…

Tamil Nadu generates a whopping Rs 44,000 crores in revenue from the Government owned TASMAC liquor stores every year. It is truly unfortunate that these shops have turned into a key source of revenue for the state as their adverse effect on the populace is not quantifiable. Making the entire situation even more unpalatable is the location of such shops across the state. Residential neighbourhoods which were once peaceful have seen great disruptions due to the presence of TASMAC shops.  One such area is in Perambur where three TASMAC shops operated within 100 mts, making the lives of residents increasingly…