Civic

Roll on/Roll off services between Vasai and Bhayandar Mumbai's water ways are expanding, albeit slowly. A new RoRo boat service started between Vasai and Bhayander from 20th February. The ferry service which covers 1.89 nautical miles or 3.50 kilometres has been started on a pilot basis. It will take 15 minutes to cover the distance one-way and will accommodate 100 passengers and 33 vehicles in a single journey. The name RoRo comes from the term roll on/roll off which means that vehicles can also be ferried across in the boat. Suvarnadurg Shipping and Marine Services Private Limited will be running…

Water crisis in summer looms The city faces a potential water crisis this summer due to drought. Many areas have irregular supply and low-pressure flow. In Hebbal, Banaswadi and JC Nagar, there has been a decline in water frequency, with the once-in-two-days Cauvery water supply reduced to once every five days. At Munireddy Palya, there are complaints of erratic supply patterns and short supply hours. The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) denied it, but residents suspect that the agency is rationing water to preempt a summer crisis. Weak Southwest monsoon rains, reduced levels in the Cauvery basin reservoirs…

Obstructing pedestrians and commuters is an offence under Section 201 of the Motor Vehicles Act. Though the laws are spelt out, neither the local administration nor enforcement agencies have taken measures to implement the laws against illegal parking on roads and wrongful occupation of footpaths, in the interest of the public in Chennai.   Footpaths are usurped by restaurants, commercial establishments and street vendors to serve vested interests. Illegal parking on footpaths is rampant across our city and beyond. The local officials themselves seem to be ignorant of the rule of law, and claim that the footpath is owned by…

Pink Squad looks into the safety of women travelling in Chennai Metro Rail The Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) conducted a survey last year on the safety of women passengers in metro trains. The majority of the 12,000 women who took part in the survey opined that they felt safe travelling in the metro trains. However, they have concerns over male passengers occupying the seats in women's coaches. In a bid to address this issue and to further improve the safety of women passengers, CMRL has recruited around 25 women, who are trained in martial arts, to patrol on the…

257 water crisis zones in the city The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has identified 257 areas facing potential water scarcity. Poor monsoons have led to a significant drop in the water table, with 1,240 out of 10,995 borewells expected to dry up soon. To meet the shortfall, an extra 1,680 million litres of water per day (MLD) is needed. Hence, the BWSSB is planning to make up for the water shortage with its 60 tankers, 120 private tankers and high awareness programmes. Almost 20% in the city get water from tankers due to increasing scarcity in the state,…

Leopard spotted behind residential complex A leopard was seen behind the boundary wall of Oberoi Splendor, a residential complex near the Aarey forest. A video taken of the leopard shows it walking parallel to a barbed wire fence. Forest officials are keeping an eye on the situation and patrols have been put in place. They have made an appeal to people to inform them in case they spot a leopard. Residents of the complex have been advised to keep away from dark areas, to ensure that children and pets are not allowed outside without the presence of an adult, and to keep…

Citizen activism in Bengaluru has been an example of perseverance and driving change. There are citizen groups that serve as an inspiring example that not all development initiatives need to be government-led. Sustained citizen action can play a huge role. These groups have demonstrated that the city can advance through hyper local intervention by citizens. We profile a few of these groups that mark their milestone years of being changemakers. Whitefield Rising: 10 years of citizen action The question of responsibility for addressing everyday issues, like garbage and traffic, prompted Nitya Ramakrishnan, founder of Whitefield Rising, Mahadevpura constituency, to contemplate that…

In the first week of December 2023, residents of Chennai and surrounding areas experienced flood fury, which brought the city to a grinding halt. When the 2015 Chennai floods happened, the authorities said it was a one-in-100-years disaster and would not occur for a long period. Yet, in eight years, here we are facing the consequences of a disaster. Now the citizens are asking — who is to blame for the Chennai floods? Major rivers, lakes and canals in the city come under the purview of the Water Resources Department. "But the department, which should be restoring waterbodies and channels…

Bengaluru world's 6th most congested city Bengaluru was ranked the sixth most congested city in the world by the TomTom Traffic Index 2023. TomTom is a Dutch technology firm. This is an improvement from the second rank in 2022, when travel for a 10-km drive took 30 minutes. But in 2023, the time was brought down to 28 minutes for 10 kms, with the congestion level at 63%. The ‘worst day’ last year was on September 27th, when it took 33 minutes to cover 10 kms, mainly on the Outer Ring Road, where a number of private vehicles from tech…

Panel on Ennore gas leak directs CIL to pay compensation The seven-member technical committee constituted by the Tamil Nadu government to look into the ammonia gas leak in Ennore in Chennai has directed the Coromandel International Limited (CIL) to pay a fine of ₹5.92 crore to the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB). The panel confirmed that the leak that occurred on December 26 and affected many local people, was from an under-sea pipeline belonging to the fertiliser plant. The technical committee also recommended that the existing pipeline should be replaced by a new one that has automatic control and…