Good morning, Chennai!
☔ Today’s weather: A rainy day ahead!
🧐 Did you know? One of the most rare species of trees in the city is the Boabab. It was brought here by the British and adapted to the soil and climate. There are only a few left, including one at the Egmore Museum.
🚁 A bird’s eye view
A helicopter service was recently launched to boost tourism in Mahabalipuram.
What’s it about? To help boost tourism in Mahabalipuram, the state launched a helicopter service to cover the stretch from Kovalam to Thiruvidanthai.
- Those who avail of the service can enjoy a stunning view of the coastal areas thanks to a collaboration between the state and a private company. The service costs ₹5,000 per person.
- The service is permitted to operate from Kovalam and covers places like Muttukadu, Kelambakkam, and Thiruvanmiyur. The entire journey takes about 10 minutes.
Journey: For the past six months, the state has been constructing a helipad in Kovalam. Following this, they waited for approval from the Director of Chennai International Airport to begin services.
🎆 Diwali aftermath
Pollution and noise levels increased, but waste generated and collected declined in the city post-Diwali.
What’s it about? The biggest share of sales was terrace crackers. More light and colour meant increased air and noise pollution levels. Both were at their highest compared to previous years. However, the amount of waste collected saw a decline.
- The city’s particulate matter index was 220 this year compared to 185 last year and 140 in 2021. This put Chennai in the poor air quality category. In terms of trash generated, the Corporation collected 201 tonnes compared to 270 last year.
- The 108 ambulance service saw a 45% increase in people brought to hospitals. The average number of calls increased to 20,700 from a daily average of 12,500. However, this Diwali, most were not for cracker-related injuries.
Hotspots: Ahead of the festival, ambulances were deployed closer to Diwali hotspots to reduce response times. These are areas that have recorded a high number of fire, burns, and assault cases since 2019.
🚇 Metro’s steel bridges
Phase 2 of the metro will have dozens of steel bridges at different locations.
What’s it about? As the second phase of the Chennai metro opens, 63 steel bridges will facilitate the driverless trains across different buildings and flyovers. They’ll be built where vertical clearance is limited, and viaducts aren’t viable due to existing roads and structures.
- Workers recently installed a 40-metre-long steel bridge above the Chennai bypass flyover on the Mount-Poonamallee High Road. It weighed 222 tonnes and was part of the Porur to Poonamallee stretch.
- Other locations where steel girders will be installed include ICF crossing, Kathipara, Ramapuram junction, and the national highway crossing in Koyambedu. A steel girder needs less depth than a concrete one, but both are equally safe.
Tough process: A steel girder was installed in phase 1 over the Guindy railway crossing. While they can be set up faster, it can only be done overnight since the work could disrupt traffic. Installing one also requires large cranes and continuous monitoring.
🚚 New app for goods transport
IIT Madras has designed and developed a new app to facilitate the transportation of goods within cities.
What’s it about? The OptRoute app, developed by faculty, students, and alumni of IIT Madras, connects a driver and the consumer with no intermediaries. The app is designed to help the transport of goods between cities.
- The app has zero commission per transaction with a nominal subscription-based model and direct payment from the consumer to the driver. The first version was developed by the IIT Madras-incubated startup, OptRoute Logistics.
- The app doesn’t use any third-party services, which helps to cut down the cost of operations. The main issue in transporting goods is the unavailability of return load for transporters and underutilised vehicles.
Other details: The app is available for Android and iOS devices and is operational in multiple cities, including Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Indore, and Mumbai. The team hopes to expand the service to over 500 cities by the end of this year.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Which would you prefer as a pet?
- I prefer a dog as a pet.
- I prefer a cat as a pet.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
What’s a landmark that defines Chennai?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- Recent surplus rain has meant the Pallikaranai marshland has welcomed new migratory bird species.
- Youngsters were dismayed as the Corporation stopped the construction of the football ground on OSR land.
- 210 tonnes of cracker waste was collected in the aftermath of Diwali celebrations.
- Kooks Sunny Side-up is a play based on the philosophy of clowning from Little Theatre.
- The IMD forecast says Chennai will receive heavy rainfall over the next couple of days.
That’s it for today. Have a great day!