Good morning, Chennai!
☁️ Today’s weather: High: 33 ℃ | Low: 25 ℃ | Mostly cloudy for the day.
🧐 Did you know? The Spectator, founded in 1836, was the first English newspaper in Chennai owned by an Indian and became the city’s first daily newspaper in 1853.
🎭 Korean puppet show
The INKO Centre is bringing A Tree and A Boy, the Korean puppet theatre production to the city.
What’s it about? The BEFU, the company behind the show, has the motto that happiness should be a collective dream. The company began in 1997 to foster happiness and positivity through theatre and the arts. The 50-minute play will be staged at the Little Festival, the annual event for kids organised by The Little Theatre.
- The puppet show deals with concepts like the infinite cycles of nature and signals of growth, death, and regeneration of existence by telling the story of a boy and a tree through different seasons.
- The show is non-verbal and features several puppets controlled by 2 to 3 actors. It also features shadow puppets and stick and board puppets.
Making it universal: The theme of the story was made to be relatable to people of different ages and nationalities. Part of that was making the show non-verbal.
🏢 Tata’s tech park
Tata Realty and Infrastructure has raised capital for a new tech park in Chennai.
What’s it about? Tata Realty and Infrastructure, a subsidiary of Tata Sons, raised ₹825 crore from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to refinance the Ramanujam Intellion Park in Chennai.
- The 25.3-acre park will have a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) processing area and a non-processing zone, along with a hotel.
- The money will be used to further integrate sustainable technologies at the park with its total leasable area of about 4.7 million square feet for IT/ITES commercial office space.
Enhancing climate resilience: The money and investment in the business park is an important aspect of greening the real estate sector and climate-focused financing.
🎫 Integrated ticketing coming soon
CUMTA will introduce the integrated ticketing system next January.
What’s it about? Come next January, passengers will be able to use just one ticketing system for MTC buses and the Chennai metro. The Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) plans to launch it in January.
- CUMTA selected Bengaluru-based Moving Tech Innovations Limited, which runs the Namma Yatri app, to help develop the system.
- The first phase might include cab aggregators and share autos. Passengers will be able to pay via QR codes or through OTPs.
Other features: CUMTA also plans to add other features, like booking movie tickets and parking.
🏞️ Reviving lakes
The CMDA will undertake a project to revive 12 lakes in the city.
What’s it about? Many of the city’s lakes are in bad shape, and the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) is planning to do something about it. The plan is to revive 12 lakes in the city, which includes those at Perungudi, Velachery, and Puzhal.
- The CMDA has prepared a roadmap to revive and beautify the spaces for locals. It includes a flood master plan and increasing their capacities.
- The CMDA has created a database for each lake, which includes information on problems faced, history of encroachment, and how they can be improved.
Blue-green spaces: Urban planning prioritising blue-green spaces can lead to more sustainable and liveable cities. The CMDA’s approach aims to address the environmental challenges and have a harmonious relationship between urban development and nature.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Do you read the newspapers daily?
- I read newspapers daily.
- I don’t read newspapers daily.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
Which media house/news publication do you get your news from most often?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- The Government Arts College at Nandanam has now become a co-ed university.
- The city’s dog census by the Chennai Corporation and the World Veterinary Services will begin today.
- An encroachment removal drive on GST Road began to reclaim land valued at ₹100 crore.
- Double-decker metro work on Arcot Road is on the fast track despite initial delays.
- Women-led safety audits in resettlement communities aim to address security concerns.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll:
- I prefer Zomato: 50.0% 🏆
- I prefer Swiggy: 50.0% 🏆
Answers to Yesterday’s Question:
How often do you exercise in a week?
Kavi: “2-3 days a week”
Suchi: “6 days a week”
That’s it for today. Have a great day!