Good morning, Chennai!
☀️ Today’s weather: Sunny weather with high temperatures.
🧐 Did you know? The International Carrom Federation (ICF) was founded in Chennai in 1988. It’s the official governing body of carrom.
🎓 Women in the student body
MSSW introduced a 2% reservation for women candidates in student body elections.
What’s the story so far? Joel Shelton, a policy researcher from the Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived Urban Communities (IRCDUC), conducted an online survey on the percentage of women winning the Madras School of Social Work (MSSW) elections in 2021. He was informed about how unfair the election process was.
- To bridge the gap between men and women, the institute has proposed a 2% quota for women candidates for the post of college president. Last year, with a few women in the running, the results were an all-men student body.
- The response to the reservation was mostly positive. There wasn’t much resistance from male students. Women students now feel heard and represented and hope the new rule will open the doors for more women candidates.
What’s been the outcome? Thanks to the reservation, more women have jumped in. Out of 15 candidates running this year, eight are women.
🅿️ Unauthorised parking at MRTS stations
Parking for regular commuters at MRTS stations is scant due to unauthorised parking.
What’s it about? Passengers travelling by the Mass Rapid Transport System (MRTS) between Chennai Beach and Velachery have little space to park their vehicles since non-passengers are allowed to park inside stations. They’re forced to park outside the designated areas.
- Many of the thousands using the MRTS daily travel to the station via their personal vehicles. In some stations, parking contractors allow outside vehicles to be parked inside, meant for commuters.
- The covered parking space is occupied by autos, cars, and minivans. In some places, school and college buses are also parked, forcing commuters to park their vehicles out in the open.
What’s being done? An official from the Southern Railway said a complaint was registered at the Perungudi station, and the Commercial department has taken notice.
🥩 Meat waste problem
The Chennai Corporation has no solution to the city’s meat waste problem.
What’s it about? Over 2,000 meat shops across the city, catering to hundreds of people, dump their waste meat in garbage bins along the roads. With several thousand tonnes of meat waste, the Corporation doesn’t have a plan to deal with it.
- According to official data, Chennai has over 4,300 retail poultry shops, including over 2,200 licensed ones. These are active, especially during the weekends.
- Licensed shops produce at least 250 tonnes of meat waste a day. In places like Mogappair, roadside shops dump meat on the streets. Not only are they a health hazard, but they’ve also spawned a stray dog menace.
What can be done? Kerala, for example, has the Suchitwa Mission to process and dispose of meat waste. Some of it is converted into dog and animal feed. They have two meat waste disposal plants.
- In Chennai, the rules state chicken and meat waste from licensed shops are to be collected by stall owners and sent to processing centres by private agencies.
🥂 Mocktails are a hit
Mocktails are a big hit at several restobars and pubs in the city.
What’s it about? With millennials and Gen Z looking to eat and drink healthy, mocktails like the Annachi Ennachu and Naranja Exotica are gaining popularity in pubs and restobars. They’re becoming more inclusive, with more options for those who don’t drink.
- Several establishments have realised the need to cater to those who don’t drink with options like non-alcoholic beer, non-alcoholic gin and tonic, and even non-alcoholic champagne.
- For restobar owners, it’s a win-win. The non-alcoholic options can be charged as much as alcoholic drinks since they offer a similar experience of spending time with family and friends and having a drink.
Health conscious: The younger population are more mindful of what they eat and drink. Even though some move to wine, considering it less harmful, it’s still alcohol. There are also more requests for low-sugar and fruit-based drinks.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Do you think Chennai’s food and beverage choices are on par with other big cities in India?
- I believe Chennai’s food and beverage choices are on par with other Indian cities.
- I don’t believe Chennai’s food and beverage choices are on par with other Indian cities.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
What type of museum would you like to see in the city that’s not currently there?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- Ponds at Sholinganallur are in ruin due to unchecked encroachments.
- Retteri Lake will provide Chennai with 10 million litres of water a day with the new Kolathur treatment plant.
- T4T – Tamilians for Tamil Nadu launched to help school students with project-based learning.
- A new law to curb the illegal transfer of ownership and regulate Chennai’s beach horses will be introduced.
- Chennai Corporation will nominate its best wards for the Centre’s City Beauty Competition.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll:
- I prefer private transport or taxis in other cities: 36.4%
- I prefer public transport in other cities: 63.6% 🏆
That’s it for today. Have a great day!