Good morning, Chennai!
🌧️ Today’s weather: Rainy and cloudy for today.
🧐 Did you know? The Government Fine Arts College had the first photography department established in South Asia in 1855.
🚶 Walking track
An 8-km long health walk track was inaugurated in Besant Nagar to promote a healthy lifestyle.
What’s it about? The state health department has set up an 8-km health walk track in Besant Nagar. It was inaugurated by sports minister Udhayanidhi Stalin.
- The track begins near Dr Muthulakshmi Park. At every kilometre, benches are installed with statues of people walking their dogs. However, due to the rains, people were forced to bring their umbrellas and raincoats.
- Given the current rainy season, some are worried about maintenance. While there were pumps to remove water along the track, a couple of people did fall into potholes. Others are hoping this doesn’t turn out like the Pedestrian Plaza in Pondy Bazaar.
What’s being done? The route was picked since it has mostly plain walls along the road. A blue brigade will keep watch for encroachments.
🚙 Over the speed limit
With the new speed limits in effect, over 180 speeding cases were booked by police.
What’s it about? The revised speed limits came into effect on Saturday, and the Chennai Police booked 184 cases for overspeeding. Due to spells of rain, several areas saw traffic congestion.
- Among those who were booked were 177 two-wheelers. The police have deployed 6 speed radar machines, with more in the offering. There are also ANPR cameras and interceptor vehicles.
- The cameras were used to book 63 motorists at different junctions. Since it was the first day, most people were let off with only a warning.
New speed limits: Per the new speed limits, it’s 60 kmph for Light Motor Vehicles and 50 kmph for heavy vehicles. For two-wheelers and auto-rickshaws, it’s 50 and 40 kmph, respectively. In residential areas, the speed limit for all vehicles is 30 kmph.
📚 To encourage reading
A new initiative at city colleges will help inculcate reading and increase awareness of English and Tamil literature.
What’s it about? The state public library department has launched a reader’s forum to be set up at the city’s colleges to encourage students to read and learn about Tamil and English literature. Members will be given a card that can be used to access college library books and discounts at book fairs.
- While colleges have book clubs, the new initiative will be integrated with them. It’ll be launched at 20 colleges, including notable ones like Loyola College, Presidency College, and Women’s Christian College.
- The forum will meet twice a month to organise activities like book readings, essay and poetry reading competitions, and sessions with authors, including Perumal Murugan and Imayam.
Good response: At Presidency College, over 200 students have joined the forum. At the Quaid E-Milath College, over 1,700 students have signed up.
🎎 Entertaining kids
A group of professionals in the city organise free puppet shows for kids.
What’s it about? Open House, as the group called themselves, put on a free puppet show performance for kids at an independent house in Medavakkam. They also regularly host free theatre, puppetry, and art workshops.
- They’ve conducted over 500 shows so far. Some of the roles are played by auto divers, a cinematographer, a director, and teachers. A dominant theme in the show is nature.
- The average attendance for these shows is 30, thanks to word of mouth. They’ve even performed shows for just a few people.
For the community: Many of the team members are also involved in other civic and community activities. While they all come from somewhat different backgrounds, they share a passion for storytelling.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Do you take a lot of photos on your phone?
- I take a lot of photos on my phone.
- I don’t take a lot of photos on my phone.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
What’s your favourite non-Indian cuisine?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- The Chennai Metro has deployed 350 water pumps to drain water from flooded areas.
- After a brief respite, Chennai will witness more monsoon rain this week.
- IIT Madras Conclave showcases students’ projects on cutting-edge technology.
- Adyar River encroachments continued to be removed as families were given tokens for new tenements.
- The city’s planned areas faced relief during the recent spell of rain.
That’s it for today. Have a great day!