Good morning, Chennai!
☀️ Today’s weather: High: 35 ℃ | Low: 24 ℃ | Clear weather for today.
🧐 Did you know? Chennai’s association with the US dates back to 1794 when President George Washington appointed businessman William Abbott as the first Consular Agent to Madras.
🎨 Indo-Korean art during Chennai Biennial
The Chennai Biennial showcases contemporary artworks from Indian and Korean artists.
What’s it about? The 5th edition of the Chennai Biennial is being presented by the InKo Centre and K-ART International Exchange Association. The exhibition is titled Confluence and will showcase works by 50 Indian and Korean artists.
- The selected Indian artists used various visual languages and techniques to convey evocative emotions. It includes vibrant landscapes reminiscent of tropical landscapes.
- 25 artists from Korea interpret and express their work through different philosophies of life. They have their own unique artistic intuition.
Cultural exchange: The exhibition is a chance for the mutual exchange and study of art between both countries. It’s a showcase of artworks from different perspectives.
Details: The exhibition is on till March 26 at the Lalit Kala Akademi Regional Centre.
🗳️ Russians cast their vote
Russian citizens in Chennai and Bengaluru cast their votes for their Presidential election.
What’s it about? The Russian Cultural Centre had tight security as Russian citizens in the city and from Bengaluru cast their votes for the Russian Presidential election. Over 100 citizens, including consulate staff and families, began the process in the morning.
- The process involved verifying their documents and dropping their ballot papers in the box. Russian elections are stretched across 11 time zones.
- The results were known early Monday as Vladimir Putin declared victory. His opponents included Leonid Slutsky of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia and Nikolai Kharitonov of the Communist Party.
Across South India: There’s a sizeable Russian population in Auroville and Kundankulam. Russian citizens in Kerala also voted. Voting began on March 8 in Vishakapatnam, the 14th in Trivandrum, the 10th in Auroville, and the 15th in Kudankulam.
💧 Low mineral content in packaged water
A new study has suggested that packaged drinking water in Chennai has low mineral content.
What’s it about? A team of researchers at IIT Madras studied 30 popular brands, which showed that while they followed the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) maximum limits, they fell short of the National Council of Research dietary standards by 91%. The researchers recommended BIS to set minimum values for all minerals in drinking water.
- The brands had an average total dissolved salts (TDS) of 56 mg/litre. The permissible limit set by the BIS is 2,000. They had only 3.5 mg/litre of calcium. The dietary standard is 188, and the BIS limit is 200.
- Among the brands tested, the ones from refillable kiosks at railway stations fared the best. It had over 300 mg/litre TDS since it undergoes only reverse osmosis.
Process: Companies manufacture packaged drinking water by purifying and treating groundwater through multiple filtration and reverse osmosis processes. This decreased the TDS in the water.
🛣️ New bypass road
The state highways department has proposed a new Uthirampur bypass road.
What’s it about? The plan is for this new bypass road to ease traffic going to places like Kancheepuram and Tiruvannamalai. After studying the traffic patterns, the highways department has decided to build a two-lane road with paved shoulders.
- The new 4 km road will help improve access to several steel, textile, and cement industries in the area. Since the location where the road branches from the existing state highway is prone to accidents, there will be T-shape, Y-shape, and four-way intersections.
- Currently, buses stop in the middle of the highway and restrict traffic flow. A tender was floated last week to build four bus bays along the new road.
History: The bypass road was announced in 2018 by then Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, but progress was minimal. The highways department has allocated ₹7 crore to acquire land from private landowners.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Do you like watching horror movies?
- I like watching horror movies.
- I don’t like watching horror movies.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
What’s your favourite fashion accessory?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- Educational institutions in North Chennai will get facelifts thanks to the new development projects.
- The proposed bus terminus at Chengelpattu has hit a legal roadblock.
- Jolly Phonics is a new teaching methodology in Corporation schools to make learning English fun.
- Chennai Super Kings was shown to be the number one donor to the AIADMK in 2019.
- Adambakkam residents continue to face shrinking road space due to repeated encroachments.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll:
- I would try bungee jumping: 16.7%
- I would try skydiving: 83.3% 🏆
Answers to Yesterday’s Question:
Which fictional character would you want to be friends with?
Suchi: “The Phantom from the Phantom comics”
Shiva: “Inigo Montoya”
That’s it for today. Have a great day!