Civic

In September 2021, a mother-daughter duo was killed due to a fire that broke out in an apartment near Bannerghatta Road. After the incident, whether in the media or discussions with friends and colleagues, there was a sudden interest and surge of questions on who can be held accountable for fire accidents in high-rise buildings. Just last week, another fire in an apartment near Electronic City brought the issue into focus again. Often, people conclude that fire accidents occur due to the negligence of builders. The builders might either construct buildings in violation of the sanctioned plan or resort to…

Controversial farm laws repealed after a year of protests On the morning of November 19th, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation and announced that all three farm laws that the Centre had introduced a year ago will be now be repealed in view of the stiff opposition of farmers. The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act had sparked the largest protest in India's history. The protest, led by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) at Delhi's border,…

Half of Chennai without stormwater drains; sewer lines helped clear floodwater In the aftermath of the recent spell of rains that inundated the city, questions are being asked of the stormwater drain network that should have prevented water-logging. Data shows that more than half the city still doesn’t have a robust, well-connected network of drains, causing flooding during monsoons. The city has 2058 km of drains, which is less than 50% of the area that should be covered to prevent water-logging. In the absence of stormwater drains, data from the Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) has revealed…

BDA to call global tenders for fresh Master Plan The BDA (Bangalore Development Authority) will begin to call global tenders for a fresh Master Plan for the city in a week. The new plan is expected to be ready by mid-2023. The previously drafted RMP (Revised Master Plan) 2031 was supposed to guide the city's development until 2031, but was scrapped by the BDA last year following objections from the public. A focus area for the new Master Plan 2031 would be to boost TOD (Transit-Oriented Development) along the city's transit corridors, especially along the Metro rail and the upcoming…

First ‘pod’ hotel at Mumbai Central railway station Indian railways’ first pod hotel was inaugurated at Mumbai Central station on Wednesday, November 17th, by Raosaheb Danve, minister of state of railways. The hotel is spread over 3000 square feet and is located on the first floor of the station building, with facilities such as 48 capsule-like rooms and separate pods for women and differently-abled persons. Affordable overnight accommodation is also available. For 12 hours, passengers will have to pay Rs 999, and Rs 1,999 for 24 hours.  Source: Hindustan Times Private hospital in Mumbai becomes first provide free COVID-19 vaccination …

Translated by Sandhya Raju 2015-ம் ஆண்டுக்கு பின், இது வரை கண்டிராத அளவு மழை கடந்த சில தினங்களுக்கு முன் சென்னையில் கொட்டித் தீர்த்தது. வடகிழக்கு பருவ மழைக்கு பின் வந்த இந்த அடர் மழையால் சென்னையின் பல பகுதிகள் தண்ணீரில் மிதந்தன. பல பகுதிகளில் வீடுகளுக்குள் தண்ணீர் புகுந்ததால், தாழ்வான பகுதிகளில் வசிக்கும் மக்கள் பாதுகாப்பான இடத்தில் தற்காலிகமாக தங்க வைக்கப்பட்டனர். நாட்டின் பல நகரங்களைப் போலவே, சென்னையில் ஏற்படும் வெள்ளத்திற்கு பல காரணங்கள் உள்ளன. இது சில ஆண்டுகளாக இன்னும் மோசம் அடைந்துள்ளது. இந்த பிரச்சனைகள் களையப்படவில்லை எனில், அடுத்த பத்து வருடங்களானாலும் வெள்ள பாதிப்பை தடுக்க முடியாது. நகர்ப்புற வெள்ளத்திற்கு வித்திடும் விரிவாக்கம் சென்னை மாநகராட்சிக்கு கீழ் வரும் நகர்ப்புற பகுதி, கடலை ஒட்டி அமைந்துள்ளது. முன்பு விவசாயப் பகுதியாக இருந்த சமயத்தில் அதற்காக பல ஆயிரம் ஆழமற்ற பெரிய ஏரிகள் அமைக்கப்பட்டன. சென்னையின் நிலப்பரப்பு…

Devotees bathe in Yamuna despite toxic foam To mark Chhath Puja on November 10th, hundreds of devotees stood in knee-deep waters of the Yamuna river that was heavily polluted with white toxic foam. Caused by pollutants from industries in New Delhi that dispose off their toxic waste into the river, the 1,336 km Yamuna is one of the world’s most polluted rivers, and provides more than half of New Delhi’s water. Three Yamuna Action Plans have done little so far to clean up the river. Ironically, union cabinet minister Nitin Gadkari announced just after the media splashed pics of people…

Chennai faces week of deluge and water logging Chennai faced above average rainfall in two intense spells this week, leaving most of the city water-logged. Many residents found themselves marooned when heavy rains lashed the city, with power supply being cut to prevent mishaps. The city saw 5.5 times more rainfall than is the norm for November in just a week, leaving civic agencies scrambling to run rescue and relief operations. Multiple agencies including Chennai Corporation, the Fire department, and state and national Disaster Response forces were deployed to rescue stranded individuals and those in distress and provide shelter and…

99% of Mumbai vaccinated at least once, according to BMC data Ninety-nine percent of Mumbai’s population has been vaccinated at least once, according to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) data. BMC said it administered 15.067 million vaccine doses (both doses) until November 10. This includes vaccine doses administered at all private, municipal, state and central government-operated vaccination centres since January 16 this year, when the vaccination drive began across the country. The city's eligible population is 9,236,500. “So far, a total of 9,204,950 beneficiaries have been given their first dose, of which 5,862,933 beneficiaries have received both their doses.” A BMC…

High COVID count in four wards Four BBMP wards - Koramangala, Hagadur, Bellandur and Begur - have high COVID counts, reporting around 25 cases a day. The reason is said to be the increased influx of migrants, who had not been tested properly at railway and bus stations, said a civic health official. BBMP Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta said they are monitoring the situation in the four wards and are continuing surveillance and genome sequencing to check for any new strain. Of 286 cases reported in the state on Thursday, 169 were from Bengaluru Urban district. However, active case count in…