Infrastructure

Vidya Sagar, a social welfare organisation working with disabled people, asked the children attending their school where they would like to go for an outing. The response was unanimous: the beach. While Chennai has myriad attractions to offer for those looking to spend time in the city, the attraction of its beaches remains unparallelled. Sadly however, these beaches, despite being immensely popular, remain inaccessible to individuals with disabilities. Efforts at inclusion The efforts to make Chennai’s beaches inclusive has been in the works for over four years now. Various disability rights organisations have presented proposals to make the beach accessible…

We have come a long way from the days of paraffin or kerosene lamps. Though our grandparents may be familiar with these lighting relics, they are now relegated to occupying a small space in our storage or as a curio on display. Days of kerosene street lamps Kerosene street lamps were part of daily life in Bengaluru up till August 5, 1905. The task of cleaning, refuelling and lighting them was designated to three men appointed by the local administration. An inspector was also tasked to oversee the entire lighting operation in the city. This Victorian-era practice of lighting street lamps…

In my 3rd floor apartment water gushed out of the bathroom floor drain, much like what happens on the roads on one of those manic Mumbai monsoon days. There surely was a blockage in the drain pipe somewhere, resulting in back flow. “Get the drain plunger,” shouted my wife, but little did we realise that a drain plunger would be an insignificant piece of equipment in the scheme of things. Quickly, my adrenaline-laden blood recalled an evening walk conversation with my friend who lived on the 19th floor. He had had a similar experience just the other day, and when…

In the past three months, two buildings collapsed in Mumbai. At least 12 people died. These buildings were deemed unsafe for habitation. We wrote here about why tenants refuse to vacate crumbling buildings.  About 300 persons died and 1146 injured in the seven years between 2013-19 in building collapses across the city, as per information received through RTI by activist Shakeel Sheikh.   On September 21, about 40 people died, including 18 children, due to a building collapse in the neighbouring town of Bhiwandi. Thereafter the Bhiwandi-Nizampur Municipal Corporation disconnected electricity of three dilapidated buildings to force residents to vacate those…

It's been five years since GAIL Gas Limited (GGL) got a contract to supply Piped Natural Gas (PNG) in Bengaluru. The aim was for GGL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of GAIL (India) Limited, to give PNG connection to 1.32 lakh homes and 200 industries in the city by 2020. But PNG, a cost-effective, green fuel, is yet to reach large parts of the city. Karthika P S N, a resident at JP Nagar’s RBI Layout, says she's awaiting a natural gas connection since it's "eco-friendly and cheap, and will relieve us from being dependent on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinders". She…

Property prices in Mumbai—one of the most expensive real estate markets in the world—have remained constant since 2014. But home ownership has increased only marginally. Many aspire to buy homes in the city but they're forced to navigate the vast formal and informal rental market for housing. As high as 87% of respondents in a survey conducted by Noborker.com, a broker-free real estate portal, wanted to buy a house for end use, but prices, despite the stagnation, have remained forbidding. This is part two of the series where we try to explain why, despite the many unsold flats, prices don't…

Every year, property consultants produce reports that highlight the many unsold flats in Mumbai. The inventory is almost at 3 lakhs in 2020, according to a non-brokering real-estate research firm Liases Foras. The number prompts an inevitable discussion about the lakhs of vacant homes in plush, gated enclaves while at least half of Mumbai's 1.9 million people live in decrepit and squalid conditions. The average per sq ft price for homes in the city has risen from Rs 5,734 in 2009-10 to Rs 12,112 in 2019-20. The number of homes sold haven't caught up. Although the prices fell in 2020-21…

On September 23, the Deputy Comissioner, Bengaluru Urban district, is hosting a virtual public consultation to discuss the environmental impacts of the proposed Peripheral Ring Road (PRR). The project has been in the news for a number of issues - continued public opposition over non-availability of the Detailed Project Report (DPR); the validity of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report; the number of trees which will be felled for it; the plethora of court cases brought in by a number of citizens set to lose their properties. That is quite a long list. Sure, the devil is in the details,…

Properties are never a bad investment -- a popular belief shared by most. From January to July this year, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) gave approval for 57 housing layouts (4,461 plots) in Chennai and surrounding suburbs, and many citizens may be mulling over an investment in one of these. However, the process of buying a property can get messy if one is a first-time buyer. All the jargon generally thrown around does not make things any easier. It is very important to check and ensure that the property is completely legal, and that all paperwork is in order,…

Sample this: In a few years, people living in busy, congested neighbourhoods like Velachery, Mylapore, Tondiarpet will have safe and vibrant streets with spaces demarcated for walking, cycling, sitting, playing and street vending. Yes, this is how the Mega Streets project will reportedly transform our city. Six consultants have been roped in to redesign selective locations in Phase I of the project. But what is the project all about? Here is what we know about it till now. What is the Mega Streets project? This project aims to transform all the arterial and sub-arterial streets in the neighbourhood with three…