Civic

Corporation adopts a multipronged strategy to combat COVID With the possibility of a third wave of COVID-19 being predicted, the Greater Chennai Corporation plans to scale up the number of ICU beds and keep them ready at community health centres across the city. This move comes after a series of meetings held with experts and epidemiologists.  The corporation plans to increase the number of available ICU beds in phases. In the first phase, a minimum of 15 hospitals attached to the civic body will get ICU beds. The expert team also suggested the genomic surveillance of COVID-19 samples for containing…

Property tax rates to spike 14% If a proposal by the Assessor and Collector Department (ACD) is approved by BMC, Mumbai’s property owners will have to pay higher taxes this year. The rate revision had been scheduled for 2020 but the civic body decided to delay it in lieu of the pandemic. The head of ACD told Indian Express that the revision will be implemented for ready reckoner rates which help to assess the true market value of properties. BMC officials have stated that this revision will not impact owners with properties up to 500 square feet and hotels registered…

6,316 trees to be axed to revive lake Residents and activists are angered by the Karnataka Forest Department seeking public consultation to cut 6,316 trees. The trees are to be felled so as to rejuvenate the Singanayakanahalli lake, as part of the Hebbal-Nagawara valley project. Forest department officials say most of these trees are Jaali Mara (Prosopis Juliflora), but activists say there are Acacia and Pongame oil trees (Honge Mara) trees too. And that the habitat houses peacocks that belong to Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, along with foxes, snakes, birds and other animals. Activists point out…

95% seropositivity even after vaccines, reveals new study As per a new pan India level study, 515 healthcare workers showed 95% seropositivity after taking two doses of Covishield or Covaxin, indicating that both vaccines are effective and safe. The study also said formation of antibodies are high even after the first dose. Done in 22 cities across 13 states, the study found that 95% sero prevalence was triggered after 21 to 36 days of the second dose. It covered 305 male and 210 female participants out of which 425 were administered two doses of Covishield and 90 received Covaxin. The…

COVID: Corporation vaccinates traders, post-COVID follow-up initiated In a bid to prevent the Wholesale Market Complex at Koyambedu from becoming a COVID hotspot once again, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has vaccinated 239 traders, workers and others as on June 10th.  With the second wave of the pandemic subsiding, the number of containment zones has decreased in Chennai and is currently less than 100. By June 7th, the number of containment zones fell down to 81 from 365 a month ago at the height of the second wave.  The civic body has initiated post-COVID follow-up care for recovered residents of…

Twelve killed in building collapse Mumbai Paused A three-storey unofficial structure collapsed in Malad West's Malwani slum area. The man who built the house and rented the rooms out. Twelve people have died in the tragedy, including nine members of his own family. Eight children were victims of the fall. A person from the slum told Indian Express that one part of the structure was built on top of a rat infested nullah which developed cracks over the past week. Mumbai Police has ordered the PWD to conduct a thorough audit across the neighbourhood and identify similar buildings. Meanwhile, BMC…

Partial lockdown lift Post June 14, the lockdown will continue  in 11 districts, including Bengaluru Rural which has test positivity rate (TPR) above 5%. However, it will be eased for other districts including Bengaluru Urban. In Bengaluru Urban district, the following rules will be in effect: Essential shops will open from 6 am to 2 pmParks will be open from 5 am to 10 amStreet vendors can operate from 6 am to 2 pmAutos and taxis with only two persons can operateGarment industry can function with 30% capacityFactories can open at 50% capacityAll construction activities are allowed to start. Shops…

World Environment Day 2021: India to promote increased ethanol blending On June 4th, the eve of World Environment Day, the union government announced the launch of the country's roadmap for ethanol blending, with PM Narendra Modi releasing the 'Report of the Expert Committee on Road Map for ethanol blending in India 2020-2025'. The government issued the E-20 notification directing oil companies to sell ethanol blended petrol from April 1st, 2023. Ethanol quantity will now be 20% as per the notification. In this regard, PM Modi will be inaugurating three ethanol stations in Pune. The objective is to cut down on…

COVID: Government mulls phased unlock, sero-survey to be conducted Following the two-week strict lockdown to bring down the COVID spread, the state government mulls over phased unlock. The number of cases in the city has almost halved in this time, with the measures working to control the spread. Data from the civic body shows that there is an active reduction in the number of containment zones in Chennai in just a week. A street is marked as a containment zone if it has more than 10 active COVID cases. On May 31st, there were 365 containment zones whereas, on May…

Lockdown continues, level wise unlock to begin While announcing that COVID-19 restrictions will remain in place till June 15, the government eased some of the conditions on Sundays, allowing shops of essential items to remain open till 2 pm instead of 11 am. Maharashtra has decided on a 5-level unlock strategy as COVID-19 cases in the state slowly recede. Lockdown can be lifted completely in districts categorised as Level 1, which includes Thane. Mumbai has been categorised as Level 2. Level 5 has been deemed as Red Zone and will continue strict enforcement of a complete lockdown. Source: Times of…