Good morning, Chennai!
⛅ Today’s weather: Cloudy weather with pleasant temperatures.
🧐 Did you know? In the past, before the Marina, Elliots, or Neelankarai beaches, Chennai had the North Beach. It ran from Fort St. George to Royapuram. By the 1940s, North Beach had vanished.
🕹️ CSK’s new drone partner
The IPL team has brought in a city-based drone tech startup as an official partner.
What’s it about? Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) newest partner is the city-based Garuda Aerospace, a drone tech startup. It will be the team’s official drone partner for the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, a first for any team.
- The company is the first-ever dual DGCA-approved drone startup. It manufactures Make in India drones and trains people in drone technology.
- The company recently raised $22 million, the largest ever Series A funding in the drone sector. MS Dhoni is a stakeholder in the company.
Who said what? Garuda’s Founder and CEO Agnishwar Jayaprakash said the partnership is a synergy of two organisations that leverage technology and innovation. Kasi Viswanathan, CEO of CSK, said the values of both organisations align as CSK considers innovation as part of its growth and success.
🏏 Cricket back at Chepauk
India and Australia took to the field in front of a full house at the Chepauk stadium.
What happened? The newly-renovated Chepauk stadium hosted the third and final one-day international (ODI) day-nighter between India and Australia. For some of the players like Ravindra Jadeja, it’s a familiar place thanks to the Indian Premier League (IPL) and playing for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). This time, the support was for the Men in Blue, with over 36,000 spectators inside.
- This was the first time India played an ODI in Chennai since December 2019. The last time this venue had a full house was in 2013 when both teams played a Test match. It was also the first time in a decade that all the stands were open to the public.
- The scorching weather didn’t matter as fans descended on the stadium a couple of hours before the start. Those who entered from the Victoria Hostel Road were greeted by a massive mural of CSK captain MS Dhoni.
The result: Australia won the match by 21 runs. They made 269 runs during their innings. India was all out for 248 runs in 49.1 overs.
🥛 Aavin expansion rejected
The company’s request to make dairy products at its Ambattur plant was rejected.
What’s it about? The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) didn’t consent to Aavin’s request to manufacture dairy products at its Ambattur processing unit. A January inspection showed the unit was making dairy products without prior approval. The company was manufacturing more than the prescribed limit.
- The Ambattur unit came under the spotlight after Korattur residents complained of industries in the area releasing untreated effluents into the Korattur lake or stormwater drains.
- The National Green Tribunal (NGT) asked the pollution control board to inspect the area. Aavin’s plant didn’t have the mandatory green approval. The earlier approval to make 3 lakh litres of milk had expired.
Ramifications: Aavin had proposed an expansion of the unit, which the board objected to. The pollution control board has written to the government asking Aavin to comply with environmental norms and not produce other dairy products. This could affect its revenue and milk supply in and around Ambattur.
🚮 Waste piling up
Over a third of bulk waste generators have failed to process their own waste.
What’s it about? The possibility of Chennai’s landfills going away anytime soon are low, with one-third of the city’s bulk waste generators failing to process their waste. Only 570 of the 1,435 bulk waste generators have dumped their waste in the Corporation’s compactor bins.
- A building of more than 5,000 sq m that generates 100 kg of waste is classified as a bulk waste generator. They should give their waste to private operators who segregate and process it at their own plants instead of landfills.
- These private contractors charge ₹100-120 a month for an individual house and ₹5,000-7,000 for hotels and other bulk generators. To avoid tipping charges, some dump them in Corporation bins.
Who said what? Balaji Jayaraman of Waste Management Works said some small hotels don’t generate 100 kg of waste and dump them in Corporation bins overnight. Mahmood Sait of Urbaser Sumeet said source segregation would help reduce garbage in landfills.
✨ Things to do…
Here are some fun and interesting things to do in the city over the weekend!
- The Magic Show is a free live performance, this Saturday at the Government Museum.
- Meet the Unicorn series is hosting its meet-up with Ashneer Grover, formerly of BharatPe, for an unfiltered conservation.
- Comedy Night at the Chennai’Z Comedy Club features four comedians.
- Birds, inspired by the Greek play The Birds, is a play in English and other languages by director Rajiv Krishnan.
- “I’ll make a song for you” by Jerin Jose J is a unique musical poetry show with a song composed on the spot.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll Results:
- I have experienced an earthquake: 9.1%
- I haven’t experienced an earthquake: 90.9% 🏆
Answers to Yesterday’s Question:
What subject did you have the most difficulty with in school and why?
Chitra: “Maths. It was boring!”
Parthi: “Mathematics. Because I don’t like the sine and the cosine.”
That’s it for today. Have a great weekend!